Ranma the Mighty
by DragonGolem
Summary: I haven't seen a Ranma 12 and Birdy the Mighty crossover so I figured I would fix that. Of course you also realize that with me as the author things are gonna be anything but normal! So strap in and check it out! Divergent RxB definitely Warning! AU as
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty.

Author's Notes: This is probably going to be the only fanfiction I write that will need at least a review to continue. I will admit that my confidence is shot, but I can't let that keep me down, eh? I'm not sure if this is considered a crossover or a fusion. Just to warn you, divergent.. Oh well, time to boldly go where no one has gone before!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 1

A familiar red and black blur was seen hurtling overhead. This was a solitary flight, one he was used to taking, but this seemed to be a different direction. The usual scenery was starting to bore him so he was glad in a way for the change. The night sky was beautiful, he concluded, as he nursed a sore skull and bruised ego.

"Why does that tomboy hate me so much?" he asked the stars. Sure, they listened, but they certainly didn't give him any advice. He was about to think on the day's events when he suddenly realized that he better get ready for landing. Good thing the Saotome Ryu is a mid-air style or this kind of fall would turn him into street pizza. His eyes scanned for anything to break his fall when he spied a flagpole mounted onto the building he was headed towards. With a grin at his good luck, he snagged it just before he flew past it and used it to swing from towards the construction site. He gauged the distance it would take to reach the upper floor girders perfectly except for one thing, the landing. He touched down on a narrow I-beam, made slick by the recent rain, and slid down into a split. Certain portions of the anatomy are not meant to be hit at high velocities.

"K-kuso…" he squeaked out with tears in his eyes. He rolled around gingerly to avoid falling off and so he could better crawl into the fetal position. The throbbing sensation slowly lessened, but at least it took his mind off his headache. The Saotome boy stared up at the sky. Not only was it a perfect night, but now he had a place where no one could find him. Certainly can't complain about that. Now, with some peace and quiet, he could think about the day.

/-

Earlier that day…

"Boy! Get your lazy ass outta bed!" Genma Saotome shouted. The call to battle was heard all through the house seconds before the splash. It sounded somewhat like a sixteen-year-old boy being thrown out of a window into a koi pond and turning into a buxom, redheaded girl. Funny, that's exactly what happened. Unlike other mornings however, no return cry was heard. Genma looked out the window at his son-turned-daughter with a sneer until he noticed the child's posture. She hadn't even bothered to get out of the koi pond yet, her bangs were in her eyes, and her shoulders were slumped. The Saotome patriarch jumped down and landed easily beside the pond, staring at his offspring.

"Get up n' fight ya worthless good for nothin'!" he bellowed. Ranma turned towards the noise, barely registering what was there. Without a word, she got up and walked past her Pops. It was such strange behavior that even the normally dense-as-a-brick Genma could see something was wrong. He noticed his heir sit down at the table without even picking up her head. He had to tell Tendo that something seemed to be wrong with Ranma.

The young redhead sitting at the table seemed to be entirely different from the usual ball of energy that had cannonballed into their life, Kasumi concluded. She knew it couldn't be easy to be engaged to Akane, but he seemed to bounce back no matter what happened. Today was a very different story. Something had happened between her sister and her fiancée the night before and she had to find out what. Since it was still somewhat early, she called Ranma into the kitchen. She frowned in puzzlement, normally he'd be up and in there by now, but he just continued to sit there.

"Ranma-kun?" Kasumi inquired gently, the young girl just continued to sit there, until the gentle girl tilted Ranma's face up. The younger girl's eyes were so full of pain it struck right through her. The eldest Tendo girl sat down beside the redhead, gathering her into a hug. It was like holding a log, no emotion or feeling.

"Please, tell me what's wrong." She softly stroked the girl's hair, holding her like one would hold a child. Finally, a sniffling sound could be heard. The younger girl began trembling, her breath coming in quiet hiccups and small sobs. With a low wail, Kasumi found Ranma clinging tightly to her with her face buried in the brown-haired girl's chest, sobbing like her heart was broken. Kasumi was in shock, to say the least, what could be so bad that it would make such a strong person break down. Maybe it was the stresses of having to be so strong.

"K-Kasumi…?" Ranma asked softly, her eyes were puffy and full of unshed tears.

"Yes, Ranma-kun?" she replied. It looked like the neo-girl needed to gather her strength before talking. Her first question was the one that had been bouncing around in her head for several weeks now.

"Why does Akane hate me?" The tone it was asked in held so much hurt and heartache that Kasumi could feel tears well up in her own eyes. Gently cupping the smaller girl's upturned face, she smiled softly.

"She doesn't hate you. Akane's just a little confused…" she began the usual spiel before catching herself. Why was she always making excuses for Akane? How could she be so callous as to totally ignore another person's feelings? How could Kasumi herself ignore the poor boy's feelings? Tears began falling down as a hot well of grief and remorse burst open before pulling the startled redhead into a tight embrace, resting her cheek in the neo-girl's flaming hair.

"Ah K-Kasumi! D-don't cry, I'm sorry!" Ranma started, trying to comfort the girl as best as she could before she was interrupted by Kasumi.

"No, I'm the one who should be sorry. Always watching, but never doing anything. What have I done? I let my family down, I let you down… I'm supposed to be the eldest daughter. I've been a terrible sister…" before Ranma could say anything, a loud cry stopped him.

"What have you done to my sister?" Both girls cringed, but the inevitable failed to happen. When Ranma's eyes opened, she saw a sight she never expected to see. Kasumi and Nabiki staring Akane down. The youngest girl's red battle aura seemed to be dwarfed by the older girls' auras. As if this day couldn't get any weirder.

"Why are you defending that pervert?" Akane demanded incredulously.

"This has gone on long enough, little sister." Kasumi said sternly. The sternness in her normally peaceful sister's voice made the furious girl pause. The little used portion of her brain that helped her reason things out logically had finally spoken up. The larger part of her began furiously beating down the little voice that was trying to show her the error of her ways that was until Nabiki stood up for him as well.

"Kasumi's got a point, Akane. I was standing here the whole time and I didn't see anything wrong." the middle Tendo girl said, a fist planted on her hip. It was two-to-one and Akane was losing badly. The small voice began winning, but the more vicious part had one last parting shot before the mortal blow was struck.

"Hmph! Well everyone knows that your loyalty can be bought." the youngest girl spouted off heatedly, but was silenced immediately by a slap to the face from Nabiki. The Ice Queen's facade was disintegrating rapidly.

"Do you have any idea what I go through for this family? Do you think I **like** being like this?" without another word, the middle girl fled the room and went to her room. Even through the closed door her sobs could be heard. Everyone stared in shock at Akane. The girl wasn't even looking for sympathy, her dumbfounded look spoke volumes.

"I-I didn't mean to..." she began weakly. Kasumi stared sadly at her sister before returning to the kitchen. Once there, Ranma's excellent hearing could pick up the sound of muttered words, her ears burning from the tone used. It was weird, the neo-girl thought, it took all this to finally get through to Akane. The redhead even realized she wasn't feeling so depressed anymore.

"Well, it is kinda stupid bein' depressed when other people are too." she thought. The blue-haired girl slumped down in her usual place beside Ranma.

"She's really out of it if she doesn't realize I'm still here." the neo-girl thought to herself as she looked at Akane. The girl looked so lost and alone. Okay, so it was cruel to say that, but even Akane looked surprised. She would never say something like that, even to Nabiki, and actually **mean** it. Nope, something was up. The fact that Akane wasn't crying over it meant she was in shock. The silence was painful. Without thinking, Ranma slipped an arm about the slightly taller girl's shoulders. Said girl stiffened in shock and almost played pound the pervert until she got a look at her fiancée's eyes. They were red from crying, but all she saw was concern. With a sob, she flung herself at the startled girl. Old, unused instincts kicked in and she held the crying girl, unconsciously mimicking her and Kasumi.

"It'll be okay..." Ranma whispered to the distraught girl while she wondered if it really would be.

/-

"Okay, that was officially weird." he said aloud to the sky as he thought about it. That was actually the only true low point to the whole day, aside from being sent on a trip via Air-Akane. Nabiki had finally been coaxed from her room by Akane, but not without needing a bribe first. Ranma had helped her chip in to buy a huge death by chocolate fudge cake that even had fudge filling. It took all of their self-control to get it back to the house and fancy footwork to keep it away from the dumb panda. Surprisingly, it was actually a lot of fun. Kasumi was even smiling again and helping in the antics.

"Hard to believe one chocolate cake could solve all troubles..." he mused before grinning. "Well, not so hard to believe." The look on Nabiki's face was priceless. Akane even told her the truth that the two of them had chipped in for it. Akane barely saved the cake when her older sister gave her an almost Amazon-worthy glomp. He had been laughing until he found himself on the receiving end of an intense lip-lock. Even that failed to make Akane angry, she giggled the entire time. The day had gone well. Ranma was even determined to train Akane seriously. It was amazing what a little encouragement and faith could do. She actually hit him! Sure, he blocked it, but the fact that she got up enough speed to strike him said volumes. Curiously, her anger seemed to have taken a holiday, until a little while ago. Something suddenly made her mad, really mad. She seemed to actually become worse then when he got there! Without any warning she had launched him into orbit and he wound up here.

"It was goin' great until then. What happened to piss her off like that?" The blue-eyed boy lay there thinking about it, wracking his brain for an answer, but every time he got to that part his ears would ring. That was interesting. He tried to focus as hard as he could, feeling the ringing turn into a savage buzzing that sawed through his brain. Something could almost be seen behind Akane, but then he felt something rupture. Blood began running from his nose and his ears, but he was beyond caring. He dropped from his perch, heading straight for the ground. His last thought was of Akane and the strange woman standing behind her...

/-

Explosions rocked the neighborhood. What would be classified as normal for Nerima is generally frowned upon in any other part of Tokyo but Juuban, and that was a special case as well. If anyone had bothered to look outside they would have seen a man running frantically away from something. The fear was clearly evident on his face as he tried to elude his pursuer, but no matter where he went, he could still detect her behind him. It looked as if he was being chased by some terrifying monster until they got a good look at her. The girl could easily be described as beautiful. Her outfit at least covered the essentials, but still looked somewhat skimpy. Unless she was in Juuban, there she'd be considered overdressed. Her white hair was long with blue and purple locks. The other noticeable thing was that she was running almost as fast as a motor scooter.

"Back off! Leave me alone!" the man sounded frantic.

"Stop dammit! You're under arrest!" the young woman was growing angrier by the second. The man found himself cornered down an alley. He was shaking slightly as he watched her come down the alley, cracking her knuckles.

"Damn you, Birdy!" he spat angrily before vaulting straight up and out of sight.

"Shit! Where'd he go?" she glared about her, waiting for the attack. The young officer stood there for what seemed like an eternity, the only sound was her breathing. She was fuming when she finally stormed out of the alley. A sound from above her caused her to look up. She only had a millisecond to acknowledge that something was descending towards her at a high rate of speed. Well-honed reflexes kicked in as she grabbed the assailant before unleashing her Hyper Resolve. The person she had grabbed convulsed, unable to even scream as the lethal attack ran it's course. An evil laugh was heard from above her. The officer gave her victim one last stricken look before turning her gaze upward. The man she was chasing was leering down at her.

"You've taken a human life, Officer." Was all he said before vanishing into the night.

"What have I done?" she whispered in despair, holding the young man as she looked to the stars.

/-

The sun rose over Nerima as it has a habit of doing. To the non-morning people, they wish that the sun would just go back to bed. Ranma woke up to the smells of another of Kasumi's delicious breakfasts with a happy smile until the recent night's events crashed down on him.

"Wait a minute… Last thing I remember was watching the stars at the construction sight just before falling towards the ground." His memory was growing clearer until the part where he tried to remember why Akane had become angry, that's where it all fell apart. He knew better then to try that again until he was sure he was ready. Just before he awoke, he had a strange dream. He dreamt he was swimming downward towards a strange light before coming face to face with a beautiful girl. A beautiful _naked_ girl. For once in his life, he actually felt a nosebleed coming on, but stopped it through sheer force of will.

"What's goin' on? Hey! Pops didn't wake me up today. What's up with that?" he was surprised. Even after Jusendo, Pops had continued to wake him up in the same way. When he looked over, he saw the panda curled up on his own futon.

"Still sleepin'… What a dumbass!" the pig-tailed boy snorted before quickly getting his clothes together so he could use the furo. A little voice in his mind reminded him that he needed to train. Since it sounded like a good idea, it was given precedence over the furo.

"Train now, furo later." He grinned. Why did he feel so happy and uplifted? Yesterday was still somewhat fresh in his mind, but he was still curiously cheerful. Why use the stairs? He was heading down there anyway so why not jump down? Suiting thought to action, he vaulted out the window and almost instantly flowed into the first of his easiest katas. If he had stopped to look at his father, he would have noticed that he seemed to be tied into a complicated knot with a large lump on his head.

/-

"Oh my! Ranma-kun seems much better today. Don't you think so, Nabiki?" Kasumi asked her younger sister cheerfully. The other non-morning person in the house, Nabiki, merely grunted in response until her drug of choice, caffeine, finally entered her system.

"Maybe his brain was finally damaged by dear little sister." She said sleepily, but at least sounding human. The eldest girl frowned reprovingly at that, but noticed something seemed a little different about Ranma's usual katas. He seemed to be leaping even higher and punching even faster then normal. Sure, watching him practice would make most people look for the special effects crew, but he seemed completely inhuman. Kasumi almost didn't notice when breakfast was done and a last minute save turned it into an Akane reject.

"Ranma-kun! Breakfast!" the gentle girl called out. She noticed the boy stop before coming inside. He had a confused look on his face that just wouldn't go away. Normally, Kasumi found it cute, but today it was strangely unsettling.

"Does my balance seem to be off?" he asked her. She blinked at him. It wasn't normal for him to ask a question like that.

"Not particularly, you did look as if you were pushing it a little." She reflected on the past few minutes. Even Nabiki perked her head up. Kasumi giving out martial arts tips? Maybe she didn't know everything. That was a disturbing thought.

Everyone gathered around the table for breakfast, even the revived Genma. Said panda kept giving his son strange looks all through the meal, not even trying to steal off his plate. Finally it wore thin on the Saotome heir.

"What's up Pop? Why ya starin' at me?" he demanded irritably. Soun started crying over the boy's anger, but as was the case, no one listened.

"You nearly broke me in half you ungrateful boy!" the patriarch finally spit out. Everyone stared in complete amazement at him. Even Ranma, who had no idea what he was talking about.

"That's crazy! What am I? The uncute tomboy?" why do old reflexes kick in at the worst times? He thought to himself just before the cry of-

"Ranma no Baka!" echoed throughout the entire house and he found himself slammed into the koi pond. Unlike previous times however, he felt something shunt his mind aside and take over. Judging by everyone's looks, he wasn't himself. He found himself standing up, he seemed to be taller then normal.

"When did the girl-half get as tall as the guy-half?" he thought as his wandering eyes took a look in the koi pond. He was treated to the same vision that everyone else was and his screams echoed in the vaults of his mind.

The looks were making the girl kind of nervous. She wondered how the procedure could have gone so wrong that falling in water of all things would trigger the switch. The only real difference she could see was that her hair was predominantly red with her usual blue and purple locks of hair. She looked to the family staring out at her and rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously.

"Hi, I'm Birdy. Sorry 'bout this."

The End

Author's Notes: Mwahahahaha! I couldn't resist! There were no other Birdy the Mighty and Ranma ½ crossovers out there! I am beating my writer's block with a new story rather then letting it get the best of me! Stay tuned for more exciting episodes! Ja ne!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty.

Author's Notes: I am sorry for making a review a requirement for me to finish this story, but it doesn't seem to have backfired. Just so you know, I will **never** do that again. Well, I hope you enjoy the story!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 2

Further Confusion

The normal atmosphere of chaos surrounding the house seemed to be shattered. Oh sure, it wasn't unusual for something new to happen during breakfast, but this takes the cake. The young woman in question causing the disturbance was looking a little shamefaced and kept fidgeting nervously. 'Why am I so nervous?' she thought irritably 'I'm not a child! I'd give them all a piece of my mind for staring at me, but I just can't bring myself to do it.' Her thoughts would have continued if a new set of thoughts hadn't interrupted.

'What's going on?' the voice asked. Even though he sounded calm, there was a thin layer of apprehension under it all. Birdy managed to feel even worse, if that was possible.

'Stay calm. I guess I had better explain what happened. Just listen.' She whispered back in her mind. The family was continuing to stare at her. Everyone except Akane that is. According to Birdy's limited familiarity with these people, the girl should be fuming about perverts and the like. Great.

"I suppose ya wanna know what's going on." She was inwardly dismayed as normal speech patterns were corrupted by his own speech patterns. With a shake of her head, she continued. "As I said, my name's Birdy and I'm with the Galactic Police. I shouldn't even be tellin' er.. **telling** you this except for what you saw." She saw that she had everyone stunned. Nabiki was the one to recover first.

"Okay, I'll buy that, but what are you doing with Ranma?" 'Good question' Birdy thought. 'I guess I better tell them.' The strange gaijin girl took a deep breath before launching into the whole series of events that led up to this morning. She ended her explanation with a sheepish smile.

"I didn't expect water to undo the block that separated us." She said. Kasumi stood up and went into the kitchen. Birdy raised an eyebrow at this, but failed to comment.

"Do you believe in curses?" Genma asked. The girl shook her head.

"I don't believe in magic. That's kids' stuff." She scoffed. Genma rolled his eyes, as did Ranma, but since he was inside of Birdy, no one saw. 'What?' she asked her passenger. The boy didn't reply, merely directing her attention to Kasumi. The gentle girl was carrying a kettle of warm water.

"Prepare to believe!" the fat patriarch shouted as he took the kettle and unceremoniously dumped it on the girl's head, turning her into a he. 'What the hell?' she thought frantically.

'Relax! It's just the curse. When I'm splashed with cold water, I turn into a girl and turn back when splashed with hot. I think when ya combined us ya ended up becoming my girl-half.' Ranma was even amazed that he explained it that well. Birdy was curiously silent as she digested this information. Breakfast continued with Ranma answering Birdy's questions. As a result, he ate slower and actually tasted his food. The questions were merely a formality since the two of them were linked even in their minds or so she thought. He told her as much as he could, but deliberately held some things back. Why not give her a surprise? As much as she tried, she couldn't pry his secrets loose. His mind was a steel trap. Sharp and a bitch to open.

"This means we have to get rid of the curse more then ever! A likely story that she's really with any sort of police force! Why would they want such a weak woman?" Genma loudly proclaimed. The table was used to his rants by now, but Birdy was fuming. 'How dare he say that? I am **not** weak! Oooh that really burns me up!' she thought furiously.

"Pops, I can honestly say this one area I'm not quite better then you in, but at least I **can** keep my mouth shut." Ranma said calmly. Akane was visibly trembling from rage at what the pervert was saying, but couldn't find anything wrong with it. Without further ado, he picked up his glass of cold orange juice, and dumped it over his head. The furious Birdy stood up slowly, fists clenched at her sides.

"Panda no Baka!" she howled furiously, curiously wondering how she knew that, before leaping into the fray. The family ignored the commotion. It was familiar even if one of the participants was a little different. As for the pig-tailed wonder, he merely laughed his ass off.

"How can I profit from this? My pictures are going to dry up because she's not as busty as Ranma-chan, but she certainly has an aura about her. Better think about this more on the way to school." Nabiki thought before quietly packing her things and leaving.

/-

The scene was familiar. Strangely, Ranma managed to stay a guy, even making it past the ladle-lady. Akane wasn't so lucky. She received a face-full of water. The blue-eyed boy offered her a towel rather then a smirk because he really didn't want to fight this morning. The tension between the two was palpable. The pig-tailed wonder was starting to get paranoid about when the mallet would come down. 'Is it always like this?' Birdy asked him.

'All the time.' Ranma thought back sadly.

'How can you stand it?'

'…'

'C'mon, what's wrong? We're in this together whether you like it or not.'

'I was just wondering about last night. All I remember is a weird buzzing in my head and then waking up in my room. I don't even remember being shocked to death.' That bit of news woke Birdy up.

'W-what? How could you **not **remember?' she thought back frantically.

'Chill out, ok? Maybe ya didn't kill me and whatever that buzzing was did. Ya saved my life. Such as it is…' he thought morosely. The alien girl suddenly had this impulse to hug the sad boy, even mentally, but refrained. Why was he able to get to her like this? Their thoughts were derailed by a heavy object impacting with their skull.

"Oi! What'd ya do that for ya macho tomboy?" Ranma shouted, justifiably upset.

"You were having perverted thoughts about Miss Birdy!" she shouted right back. The boy's face closed down. His mouth set in a grim line. Something passed through his eyes that Akane had seen only once before and that was with Saffron.

"I wasn't, but tryin' to explain myself doesn't seem to matter. You'll continue to believe whatever you wanna believe, but ya won't listen to me. Have a nice day Miss Tendo." He glared coldly once more before vaulting off toward the rooftops and barreling toward the school. Akane just stared after his departing form, tears falling down her cheeks.

"Why do I say stuff like that? I don't understand… I love you so much, but I can't stop hurting you. Why?" the blue-haired girl wiped away her tears angrily. Anger at herself, anger at the world in general, but no anger for Ranma. He was totally innocent and she knew it. Just as her thoughts were starting to spiral, a voice spoke up from behind her.

"Akane? What are you doin' n Hokkaido?" the Lost Boy asked in confusion. She spun around to face Ryoga before burying her face in his chest, sobbing brokenly.

"Oh Ryoga! It was terrible! Ranma-" she didn't get a chance to finish before the strong boy began blazing in hate.

"That Saotome! He hurt you, huh? Well I'll make him pay a thousand fold!" so saying, the Lost Boy bolted off unerringly towards parts unknown. The more things change, the more things stay the same.

"H-has he always been like that?" she mused aloud before turning and heading for school, her concerns shortly forgotten.

/-

Ranma couldn't concentrate on class. Oh wait, that's old news. What was new was that he was having a conversation in his mind that shouldn't be possible. Learn something new everyday.

'What I wanna know is how the curse is still around if this is a different body.' Ranma said. Through meditation, he managed to project himself into the joint mind and face her. His hormones were in overdrive. Here was a beautiful girl, completely naked, and sitting across from him. Strangely, his mind seemed to censor things out, but he had more important things to worry about.

'It's not quite a different body. Elements of your old body were incorporated into this one. Unfortunately, it appears this curse as you call it bonded to your DNA structure. Meaning, even with a cure it is inseparable.' Birdy briefly sounded incredibly intelligent, but somehow Ranma had the feeling she was merely repeating what she heard. Still, it made sense to the boy somehow. Then the full meaning of her words hit.

'You mean that I'm permanently half girl?' he practically screamed. He was vaguely aware that his outburst had carried to the classroom minutes before finding himself out in the hall with buckets.

'You actually took that better then I thought.' She commented sardonically. When she used that tone she sounded strangely like Nabiki. 'Besides, do you really think I wanted a partner? Let alone an Earthling? You guys are too fragile.'

'Fragile huh? I could take anything you can dish out.' He stated confidently. Suddenly he felt a powerful ki nearby. His head whipped around to face the threat so fast it would half snapped a lesser man's neck.

'What's up? Whoa! What am I feeling? It feels so…so…'

'Evil.' Ranma finished for Birdy. The girl could only agree. Without warning, Ranma dropped the buckets and vaulted out the window, sprinting for the source of trouble.

'Maybe I'd better take over…' Birdy began before being cut off by a snarl.

'You insulted me so you're gonna see what I can do!' the GP officer recoiled in shock. What they saw up ahead looked like something from a horror movie. It was nearly two meters tall and it resembled some kind of frog. Every time it swelled up the pouch on it's neck, it let loose a powerful energy blast that leveled his targets. The street looked like a war zone with charred cars and blasted bodies. His mind couldn't wrap around the devastation until his eyes focused on something. It was a child. Her black hair was tousled and her eyes were wide with fear. She was screaming every time she drew breath, calling for her mommy. The hideous creature focused on the girl with malicious intent and stepped closer.

'Ranma! That's the freak I was chasing last night! His name's Geedo and he don't care who he hurts. Please let me fight him!' However, she couldn't penetrate the icy rage that filled the boy's soul. So much light and warmth replaced by such fury that she merely watched in shock as time seemed to slow down. The alien menace had slowed down to a crawl before an explosive punch tore into his body and flung him into a solid wall, reinforced with steel. This is Nerima after all.

"I will not allow you to harm innocents. Get outta here or I'll kill you." Ranma grated. The same force that welled up inside of him to kill Saffron had returned with only vengeance on it's mind. Geedo fired another blast directly for Ranma, but the pig-tailed wonder vaulted straight up, dodging the attack completely, before unleashing a furious bicycle kick to his head that plowed him into the ground.

"I'll leave if ya tell me where that bitch is! Tell me where to find Birdy!" he spat out angrily as blood flowed from his mouth. A vicious backhand sent him careening through the air seconds before a kick tore into his back, followed by a solid punch to the gut and an axe-handle to the back of the neck. The whole assault took less then a minute, but the pain he experienced would last a lifetime. Unfortunately, his life was going to be short as he looked up and saw Ranma standing above him. His fist glowing with power, eyes showing no mercy for the fallen alien. Birdy was inside of Ranma frantically trying to get him to spare the alien so that he could go away to jail, but for some reason the normally kind boy was out for blood.

"M-mommy! Help my mommy! Somebody!" the little girl wailed. Ranma's gaze shot over to the child and saw the predicament she was in. Her mother was half-buried under a section of collapsed wall. His eyes shot up to notice the precariously balancing beam over their heads. With a grating screech it began to fall. His mind weighed all the options in an instant.

"This can wait." He thought before vanishing. Without even thinking, he brought his arms up over his head and caught the massive I-beam without difficulty. Geedo tried to get away, but a quick throw of the construction material and the alien was crushed flat. Still alive, but breathing laboriously. 'How did I do that? I'm strong but that's somethin' Ryoga could do!' he was starting to come down off his vengeance high just in time to realize the full weight of what he'd done. He'd moved faster then ever, hit harder then before, and caught an I-beam without a strain. That just wasn't normal for him.

'Birdy! What the hell's goin' on?' he cried into the silence of his mind. The one he was calling to seemed to be in complete shock at this development.

'Ah… Before I get to the explanation, focus on your right hand for a second.' She said quietly. Oh, she wanted to ask about what he did, but kept her calm with some difficulty. The boy stared at his right hand as a slight flash developed and disappeared so quickly it was almost unnoticeable. He pointed the funny triangle shaped device at the badly injured Geedo and pushed the button. 'How did I know to do that?' he asked.

'That's one of my body's natural reflexes.' She replied even as the sphere of darkness enveloped the monster and sent him into space. Further questions would have to wait until later as he began helping the rescue crews save the injured. Some hours later, he finally was able to start for home. The boy was tired and dirty, but the smile on his face just wouldn't quite.

'You like helping people.' It wasn't a question, it was a statement of fact. 'It gives you a greater feeling then mastering a new kata, doesn't it?' Birdy said with a smile obvious in her voice. The question didn't exactly catch him off guard, but it made him slow down a little.

'There's a high that I get when I overcome my limitations and perfect yet another piece of my Art. I thought nothing could even come close, but lately things have been happening to make me rethink my ideas. Yes, I love Akane. When she smiles at me it feels like the sun is shining brighter, but she rarely smiles at me anymore. Oh sure, people would think she rarely smiled at me to begin with, but it's different now. She can hurt me with a glance and kill me with her words. Earlier, however, when I was helping the rescue crews. Reuniting people with their families and saving innocent lives made me truly understand what a martial artist's duty is. To protect the weak, but now I can tack something else onto that. Give hope to those without hope.' Ranma's epiphany ended quietly and with dignity. Birdy could feel the tears running down their cheeks, but whether it was from Ranma, herself, or both, she would never know.

/-

The family was sitting around the TV together for the first time in years. Reporters were talking about the titanic struggle from earlier. Footage from an amateur photographer captured the battle perfectly. Nabiki could already feel the ideas burning in the back of her mind. Kasumi was sitting in obvious shock as Ranma showed the green-skinned creature little mercy. Genma swelled with pride as his heir could even defeat beings from another planet while Soun just cried. No particular reason as far as anyone could determine.

Akane was proud of him. She felt the love swell in her heart as she thought about everything he had done for her. She was of two minds about the whole episode. Part of her was happy he had done so well while another part wanted to eviscerate him. Further proof that he was just flaunting his supposed superiority. The happy part just rolled her eyes in exasperation. The part of the video that made even the people of Nerima gape in disbelief was when Ranma caught the massive I-beam as if he was that gaijin superhero, Superman. The truly amazing part was when he hurled it and clocked the alien. The video cut out from some unknown disturbance before the cheerful reporter came back on.

"Rescue crews just got finished with what should have lasted several more hours, but Nerima's own Ranma Saotome of the Anything Goes Style Martial Arts helped with the rescue efforts." The report wound down before being segued into a report on the hazards of eating Akane's cooking. The TV met an unfortunate end at the hands of said girl.

"Where is that pervert? Probably getting 'rewarded' by Shampoo or Ukyou." She muttered angrily. The incredulous stares drew her attention back to her family and Mr. Saotome. She would have cracked herself upside the head, but just then the door opened as the prodigal son returned.

"Hey guys." He said tiredly, but there was a huge smile plastered on his face. He was practically glowing with pleasure at something. Unfortunately, Akane's violent side latched onto that as an excuse to kill him. Before she got within a foot of her target, her eyes started to water at the acrid reek coming off of him.

"Oh my Ranma! You smell… I mean phew that reeks… Uh… Take a bath immediately." Kasumi said, wrinkling her nose. The mercenary girl couldn't help but laugh until it blew her way, then she turned green. Similar reactions could be gauged from the others. Ranma threw up his hands before storming upstairs to get his bathing supplies.

"I save the day and all I get is a bath." He grumbled, loud enough to be heard.

'You did very well, Ranma.' Birdy said to him quietly, making him smile slightly.

The End

Author's Notes: Okay, I added some humor to this chapter. For those of you wondering about Ranma's power levels just think about whose body he's using. He is a master of martial arts. Hope that clears up some of the confusion. Well, until next time! Ja ne!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty.

Author's Notes: Why must I constantly put in a disclaimer when we already know I don't own this stuff? Oh well. This story so far seems to have generated more reviews in the first two chapters then any of my other stories. Just to warn you, I love attention. Ah well, enough of my rambling and enjoy the show!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 3

Learning to Breathe

Several days after the Geedo incident generated a new level of chaos for the Tendo household. Everyone wanted a piece of Ranma Saotome and Nabiki was acting as his agent. She demanded yen to even look at him. Because of this, a fair portion of the people trying to stalk…er…interview him began to leave him alone. The more persistent ones paid the cash. Overall, once the fame died down it became almost normal again. The boy that everyone wanted to talk to was currently hiding under his favorite bridge, meditating. He wasn't the meditating type, usually, but he'd adapted so that he could actually talk to his previously unwanted body guest, Birdy. The girl was very curious about his fighting style. It looked so effective, but yet so complicated. Sharing Ranma's mind let her see that while it is complicated, for the master level moves, but even the beginner level moves were enormously effective. The two sat next to each other, mentally of course, talking about Ranma's favorite subject, the Art.

'Do ya think I could give it a shot?' she asked him. Curiously, she felt completely relaxed with him, leaning her head on his shoulder. The boy didn't even freak out. How would anyone know what they did?

'Well, I can't actually teach students…' he began before noticing his companion looking a little down. His brain began sorting through things at light-speed. 'Then again, I'm not teaching a student per se… I'd just be training myself, right? Cheer up! You'll have fun!' he threw an arm around her shoulders. She smiled back at him. After a week, they sort of got used to the fact that they were essentially naked. The fact that they practically bathed together daily also broke them of their embarrassment.

'Okay Ranma! I mean, hai sensei!' she laughed softly as he playfully cuffed her. It was agreed that they would start immediately. First, they needed to change into Birdy's body for that, but that was easy. All that water nearby actually came in handy. The first exercise was breathing. Ranma was surprised when she turned out to naturally take to the lessons. Soon he realized that he shouldn't be that shocked at this development. She actually had access to some of his memories and combat knowledge. Since she had such a jump on the average student, he decided to step up the lessons a bit. Still, it was always important to remember one of the first lessons. Learning to breath was essential for building power and maintaining the attack.

'When are we going to get into actual fighting?' she suddenly got her answer when he began directing her into the beginner's sextet of the Anything Goes style.

'You asked for it.' was all he said as he proceeded to lead her through a grueling practice session. Despite the effort involved, there was a joy in the accomplishment. They spent the rest of the afternoon flowing through the katas and enjoying each other's company.

/-

The Nekohanten, or Cat Cafe as its called, is the place in Nerima to go for quality ramen dishes at a reasonable price. Unlike most days however, the restaurant was closed as plans were made. The thought on everyone's mind was how did Ranma get so strong? Where did he get that speed? Also, how do we 'convince' him to come back with us?

"Great-grandmother, what is going on with Airen?" the purple-haired girl asked in flawless Japanese. The 'too-too cute voice' was a sham that surprisingly not even Nabiki had seen through.

"I don't know, child, but we'll find out. I sent Mousse out earlier to track him down and find out what's going on." the Elder said as she puffed on her pipe. Eerily, it looked like Happosai's, but that must be merely a coincidence.

"Are you sure he can find him? If he loses his glasses..." Shampoo said doubtfully.

"I bought him something to help with that." the aged woman replied superiorly. Her Great-granddaughter merely shrugged and went back to mopping the floor. It wasn't really a strategy meeting. They needed to get over a sudden rampage by a group of penguins looking for Dairy Queen, carrying umbrellas and wearing top hats.

"I swear this district will be the death of me yet." the old woman muttered balefully.

/-

The blind Master of Hidden Weapons stalked his prey carefully. It wouldn't do to let his quarry know where he was. Making use of available cover, he slinked along through the alley behind his target. Goggles that had been strapped on tightly replaced his usual glasses. Suddenly decided that it was time to act, he vaulted forward, flipping over his objective's head, and landed in front of him. The figure reacted typically.

"What's goin' on here and where the hell am I now?" Ryoga demanded of the heavens.

"Relax Ryoga! It's just me, Mousse." the myopic martial artist said to the Lost Boy.

"Whaddya want?" he demanded suspiciously.

"I need to get information on Ranma and I figured who better to help me then you." Mousse grinned.

"I don't know anythin' about gettin' info." the fanged boy admitted.

"It's combat information. We need to know what new tricks he's picked up."

"Wait, we just gotta fight him?" the powerful boy said hopefully.

"Exactly! Here's what we do..." he began as they two slowly brought their heads together to scheme and cackle. Can't forget the cackling.

/-

Birdy lay stretched out on the ground in the park, her hands behind her head, and filling out Ranma's usual clothes nicely. Ranma decided she should learn about relaxing and so far this was her favorite lesson. A light breeze ruffled through her hair and lightly snagged the shirt she was wearing. Ranma didn't need much convincing to let her wear a sports bra, especially with her complaining about soreness. The blue-sky overhead easily helped her forget her problems. The calm afternoon had lulled Ranma into a deep sleep, but her thoughts wouldn't let her sleep.

"Revi." she muttered the word like a curse. The woman responsible for ruining her life. Her best friend died protecting her from that evil woman.

"Violeen." this was spoken with sadness, but with resolve. A side effect of relaxing was that her thoughts became clearer. Since arriving on this planet, it had been one thing after another. The boy she was joined with was actually taking it all in stride, until he met the commander. A giant insect could be pretty intimidating even if you know what to expect. The department promised to restore his body as soon as they could, but selfishly, she hoped it would take them a while.

"I haven't felt this happy or content since Violeen, but I know that Revi is here. Who would have guessed that I would get lucky enough to be 'partnered' with someone with that much power and ability?" she squirmed happily thinking about how nice he is to her. The way those other girls treat him like a side of meat infuriates her, but she holds it in. He needs someone calm to look to. For the longest time he only had Kasumi, but now he had her. Her eyes glazed briefly as slightly ecchi thoughts played in her mind before dragging her wandering mind back.

"He trusts me. I can't betray that trust." she nodded confirmation to herself before pulling up a blade of grass and sticking it between her teeth. Wherever that idea came from it didn't matter, life was good. Her idle reverie was brought to a halt by cries of challenge.

"Saotome! I will kill you for leading on Shampoo!"

"I have seen hell! Saotome you must die!"

Inwardly she gritted her teeth in frustration. The first time in weeks that the poor guy got a break and these yahoos show up. From his memories she knows exactly who they are. With a kip, she gets to her feet easily just in time to leap away from an assortment of shuriken that land where she just stood. Her flight was interrupted by Ryoga jumping straight in her path, intent on snatching her out of the air. 'I owe Ranma a break from this shit so I'll deal with them!' she vowed silently as she twirled slightly to avoid his hands, feet planted in his chest before shoving off with a vicious flip kick, scything her legs into his jaw before dropping into a high leg sweep that took out his hips. The Lost Boy's look of manic glee turned to shock as pain exploded through his body from a series of strikes he couldn't even see let alone defend against. His breath was blasted from his body on impact with the ground. Ryoga's back arched with pain as he fought to regain his air, tears standing in his eyes from the face shot.

"I'll fuckin' kill you!" he screamed in obvious rage and pain.

"Give it a shot, punk. You ain't the first and ya sure as hell won't be the last to say that." Birdy's voice sounded cold even to her. The fanged martial artist realized something was off with his rival-sometimes-friend's voice. It wasn't the usual soprano, it sounded lower than that and menacing.

"Mousse! Thrash her! Don't waste your time!" he shouted to his current ally as he struggled to recover. He was vaguely aware of the sounds of combat just outside his range of visibility, which became non-existent as he slumped into unconsciousness.

The myopic boy had meant to just stir the boy into the trap he set using Ryoga for the purpose. Privately, Mousse called him the 'Idiot Boy' since he was so easy to manipulate, but his plan went horribly wrong. It was impossible to know what was going through Ranma's mind at that point, but he seemed vastly different. Not just in skill, but his girl form had even changed. The redhead stood ready for battle, fists clenched tightly at her sides.

"Can't I even get **one** day to rest?" the girl yelled angrily at him. Her battle aura easily swelling to three times her height.

"For everything that you've done to Shampoo you don't even deserve a minute's rest!" he fired back with more bravado then he felt, which evaporated when the girl struck the tree beside her and demolished it in one hit without even expending energy. Time to employ a technique he had observed many times before...

"Anything Goes Style Final Technique!" he cried out which stopped Birdy in fear. What could it be and how does he know it? She was clearly unnerved until he shouted. "Run away!" and took off down the street running at a speed even she couldn't match. The wind blew through her hair as she pondered that before deciding it wasn't worth worrying about.

"Need a new place to relax..." she said to no one in particular as she wandered off. Ryoga twitched.

/-

The clean up was done. The two woman sat at the table enjoying a well-earned break with tea and ramen. Nerima's weirdness index was actually somewhat lower then normal, freak penguins notwithstanding. Cologne absently wondered when something truly bizarre would happen. It was the only reason she stuck around. Her prayers were answered when Mousse came barreling though the door as if the hounds of Hell were on his heels. The poor boy looked terrible as if he'd run for blocks.

"What happened to you?" Shampoo asked him, curiosity warring with concern.

"Th-that can't be Ranma!" he managed to gasp out. Cologne bade him sit down. The poor boy was truly scared.

"Now, tell us what happened, Mousse." The Elder said. The myopic boy related the entire story, leaving nothing out. Eyes widened at his tale of horror.

"Even the Breaking Point training didn't help him! She tore into him like he was standing still." he finished finally. They sat around the table seeking out an answer to this latest problem.

"If we need someone better then Ryoga, I suppose Pantyhose Taro would be a good choice." was the Elder's suggestion.

"How do we get him?" Shampoo asked.

"That shouldn't be too hard..." she said with a fiendish light before bursting into maniacal laughter. Both children scooted away from her with looks of fear before she began hacking and coughing. She grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry about that." the young Amazons face-faulted before the old woman brought them closer to go over the plan. The more they heard, the more they shared their Elder's manic grin.

/-

The one time that the Lost Boy wanted to get lost, he found his way to the dojo. A time for celebration almost turned into a time for tears. The girl he pined away for was outside, enjoying the sunshine, and breaking cement blocks. After polishing up the last block, she swept the towel across her face to wipe off the sweat. His breath caught in his throat as her angelic face turned to him with a smile before shock settled in. Not on her face, but in the fanged boy's body as his injuries caught up to him. With a low groan, he pitched forward, unconsciously curling into a ball as darkness overtook him.

"R-Ryoga?" Akane gasped, startled as she ran over to check on him. "Kasumi! Get the first aid kit!" she cried out as she lifted the boy to his feet, draping his arm about her shoulders and muscling him inside. The gentle girl came running into the living room as Akane laid the Lost Boy out on the couch.

"Oh my! These wounds are terrible!" she exclaimed before examining him as thoroughly as she could. Since she's used to treating injuries she could be used as a field medic in Beirut. The injuries looked much worse then they actually were, which Kasumi told a relieved Akane.

"But who would do such a thing?" the blue-haired girl asked in confusion. "This kind of damage could be done by Ranma, but he wouldn't do that." The elder girl was amazed to hear the girl admit that Ranma couldn't have done it. Normally she'd be the first one out for his head.

"What's going on?" Nabiki asked as she entered the room, nibbling on chocolate Pocky and carrying her ledger. She was on her way back to her room when this mystery presented itself. The two sisters brought her up to speed. The mercenary girl frowned in thought before an idea came to her.

"Could it have been Taro?" she asked. That thought hadn't occurred to either girl, but it made sense. Someone very strong must have made these injuries. To actually see Ryoga bruised meant he was either hit by Taro's cursed form or a freight train. Further discussion was cut off by the Lost Boy slowly coming back to the land of the living. He almost assumed he was dead when three visions of loveliness met his gaze until he slowly recognized them. Kasumi held his hand as it looked like the boy was about to have a panic attack.

"Relax, Ryoga-kun." She soothed. "You're safe." Ryoga sank back onto the couch with a sigh. If Kasumi told you something, you could believe it.

"What happened to you?" Akane asked with gentle concern. Nabiki almost vomited at the concern in her sister's voice. She didn't have this much concern when Ranma was hurt. Okay, so she sold him as a commodity, she really did care. Even if only to make sure he was healthy enough to make her more money. Their elder sister being caring and concerned is a given. The young man on the couch sighed, his face clouding with anger.

"That damn Saotome did this to me." He growled. A round of confused looks followed.

"Ranma wouldn't do that!" the indignant cry didn't come from Akane, but from Kasumi of all people. Even Ryoga cringed back from it as a mild battle aura sheathed the normally gentle girl for a second.

"W-well he did. He was in his damn girl form, but looked kinda different..." he was babbling and he knew it. His sudden, inexplicable fear of Kasumi made his brain loopy, or at least loopier then usual. The sudden understanding on the girls' faces let him know there was something more to this then they thought.

"Ah... About that, it wasn't Ranma." Akane said.

"Oh really? Who else wears those ridiculous red shirts and kung fu pants?" he snorted in derision. Unfortunately the snort made his face hurt. Nabiki had a visible sneer on her face.

"I suppose I'll give you a freebie. You see, it's like this..." and launched into the whole tale. As usual, Ryoga's skewed logic made a curious figure eight before laughing.

"He actually got **killed** by some alien chick? Man, he is weak!" he chortled until a particularly nasty yank on the bandages around his ribs creak, his laugh dying down to a whimper of pain.

"Oh my! I'm so sorry. Are you ok, P – chan?" Kasumi said with only the barest trace of apology. The Lost Boy's head whipped around, but the look on her face was her usual look so he assumed it was an accident. The whole P – chan crack went over his head. Nabiki quickly fled the room as she felt the danger level shoot through the roof. Akane was looking curiously at her oldest sister.

"Why did you call him that, Kasumi?" she asked. Before the flushed girl could answer, however, the door opened. A disgruntled "Tadaima!" was heard as Birdy entered the room. Her face was set in an irritated line that deepened into a scowl as she noticed who was on the couch.

"Oh! Birdy-sama! Welcome home." the eldest Tendo sister said.

"Whoa, bad day?" Akane asked. The girl flopped down on the floor next to Akane, her eyes firmly on the sweating Lost Boy.

"Oh yeah, it was **bad**. Ranma decided I needed to relax so I was chillin' out in the park. He had already gone to sleep so I had a chance to do some thinkin' and I was enjoyin' the quiet." she paused. Why wasn't she more concerned about her grammar? 'Don't worry 'bout it. We're both two strong personalities clashing. The fact we're working together is a miracle.' she thought before continuing. "It was great, but then this joker along with the jerk in white pajamas tried to ambush me." in an aside to Ryoga "You guys have some pretty stupid war cries." before continuing "They attacked me so I fought back. This idiot was on the receiving end of a few of the beginner moves I was taught. The other one spouted off about an Anything Goes Final Attack and took off running." the silence that greeted her account was broken by Ryoga chuckling weakly. He knew his rival's way of talking and this didn't sound like it. Akane had a sudden revelation. Not everything that happened was Ranma's fault. This apocryphal thought was squashed by a sudden, overwhelming desire to mallet Ranma to the moon. Since the only one available was Birdy, then it illogically flowed to her.

"Birdy no Baka!" she cried before sending the unfortunate police girl into orbit. A slap to the back of the head made her bring the mallet around until she was stopped by who hit her. It was Kasumi.

"What's gotten into you? That was beyond rude! You had the situation explained to you and you still attacked. I'm disappointed." she said before standing gracefully and heading upstairs..

"Where are you going?" Akane called out, a bit shame-faced.

"I'm going out to find Birdy-sama and Ranma." was the reply as she headed out the door. It was unusual to hear her sister say that. The girl was down a few minutes later in a blouse and slacks combo. At her sister's raised eyebrows she sniffed.

"You tend to put your fiancée in some pretty interesting places. Just being prepared." was all she said as she headed out the door. Ryoga jumped up as best as his injured body would allow.

"I'll come with you. I-I owe Birdy an apology." he was actually moving better then either girl expected, leaving Akane alone. The violent girl stared at the hole in the ceiling. Her thoughts were a confusing jumble.

"I don't really want him. Why do I want to keep him so bad? He could be a friend, but I keep hurting him. Something tells me that Birdy won't tolerate getting smashed for long." she mused. Terrible feelings of guilt began boiling up. She always felt like this. It was like someone was pulling her strings and making her dance. The darkness began descending on her. A faint voice could be heard just on the edge of unconsciousness. With a supreme effort, she managed to stay awake. The voice grew stronger.

"Gomez." the woman's voice said imperiously.

"Yes Ms. Revi." a man's voice responded before resolving itself into a man in a manila colored suit. His hair was pale brown with a dark brown mustache. A pair of sunglasses completed the look.

"What do you know about Officer Birdy's activities?" the woman sounded vaguely displeased.

"We know she killed a human boy."

"I know that too you idiot! What else?"

"He seems to a martial artist of some skill, but little else is known. Most of what I've heard is ridiculous considering a human's limitations."

"Good. I was worried for a moment that she may have actually obtained a decent partner. Continue the operations and stop coming here. The communicators work fine."

"Understood. How is the girl?"

"Surprisingly strong and she makes excellent camouflage. Poor child doesn't even realize what's going on. Now leave." once she dismissed him, Akane felt a strange buzzing through her brain before collapsing into unconsciousness.

The End

Author's Notes: Another day, another chapter. I think I've fallen in love with writing this story. My creative juices are flowing and my batteries are supercharged! Let me know how much you like it! Constructive criticism is always welcome. Until next time, ja ne!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do now own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty. This is not a recording.

Author's Notes: What happens when you have an overflow of ideas and combine it with caffeine? The perfect recipe for a new chapter! Scared yet? You shouldn't be. Just relax and enjoy the ride! Let's get this show on the road!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 4

Learning to Fall

Flying is an interesting sensation, Birdy concluded, but the landing was something she definitely did not look forward too. Add to all this the fact that Ranma woke up just as the achieved their peak of ascent.

'Do I even wanna know what set her off?' he asked in a faintly bored tone.

'I don't know! I didn't even say anything except to explain how bacon breath and pajama boy attacked us!' Birdy could hear herself whining. Ranma balked at the enormity of what she just said,

'Ryoga **and** Mousse? How are we still alive?' his incredulity would have been cute if they weren't heading for a painful landing. The pigtailed boy seized control of the body for a few brief seconds and fixed their descent so that it went from bone breaking to merely unpleasant. Ranma was stunned to discover that either no damage was done or it was so slight it might as well be non-existent.

'Great landing! Uh...About how we're alive..." she went over the entire battle and the aftermath with her partner. When she was done, he did something completely unexpected.

'Awesome! Geez, I tried to teach Akane those same things but she never listened. You actually pay attention and the you beat Ryoga. I was actually worried about getting some rest, but it's good to see you had everything under control.' he sounded genuinely thrilled which made Birdy flush in pleasure.

'Uhm... Do you wanna turn back into a guy?' she asked him. He actually thought about it instead of just saying yes, even if he did say it anyway. At least he thought about it. The next order of business was to find hot water, which turned out to be easy. Akane's Mallet Air-Ways put them practically right on Ukyou's doorstep.

'Good ol' Ucchan! C'mon I can smell okonomiyaki cooking!' she quickly stood up, realizing she was hungry, and walked inside. What greeted her wondering eyes was a scene that brought back memories of Geedo. It looked like an alien monster and it was tearing the shop apart. A girl was squaring off against it with a kunoichi at her side. The ninja girl vanished just as the other girl's massive combat spatula came down to strike, but the beast merely shrugged it off. Ranma seemed to be getting angry at the sight just before the girl, Ukyou, was swept to the side with a mighty strike. Birdy leaped to intercept and caught the girl easily before setting her off to the side. The ninja, Konatsu, struck the mighty being with repeating blows that barely phased Taro.

'Go to the kitchen! **QUICK**!" Ranma urged her. With a barely perceptible nod she took off only to be slammed back with a powerful backhand strike. At least, that's how it should have worked, but Birdy had caught the massive fist easily.

'...Forget the water. Just take him out.' he was understandably stunned by the recent development. All action ceased as they saw the mighty girl holding the massive fist, relatively easily, before flinging him out through the storefront. The flying side of beef impacted violently with the pavement before rolling back to his feet. A snort of anger was all he managed to get out before a flying kick took him in the jaw. Apparently she waited too long to recover as she found her ankle snagged just in time to clean the pavement with her face. Obviously, once this guy had an idea, he ran with it as he continued to hurl her through the air, demolishing telephone poles and cars with her body.

'Dammit! I'm sorry, Ranma! I tried!' Birdy apologized while the pain hammered through again and again.

'S'okay! Just ask Ucchan for hot water!' he replied.

"Ucchan! I need hot wa-OUCH-ter!" she managed to call out, but her voice sounded far away. The chef girl was trying to get the water out to her Ranchan, not really seeing the change in appearance. Her panic was making the operation much more difficult, even with Konatsu helping. To their horror they say that the kitchen was demolished. Only water splashing around was cold. A new voice rent the air with a savage cry.

"Put her down Taro... **NOW!**" the man outside sounded pissed.

"That sounded like Ryoga!" the male kunoichi exclaimed as the two stood out front again watching in shock. Taro had hurled Birdy at the Lost Boy only to watch as the fanged one caught her, almost gently, and set her down. The powerful boy looked like he'd been through a war and came out second best, but his aura was burning bright. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kasumi running over to check on the damn fem-boy.

'I need a way out of this! This should do nicely...' he thought with an evil smirk as he snagged her, one-armed, crushingly. Everyone gasped in shock at the sight. Taro had just broken one of the cardinal rules of fighting in Nerima. No one hurts Kasumi.

'That does it! That fuckin' freak o' nature is goin' **DOWN**!' Ranma roared furiously. Birdy was barely conscious, but did notice when a red aura exploded outward and turned their body abruptly male. In male form, their injuries meant nothing as he stood up. Ryoga's red aura matched his sometime friend's. A sign appeared in Taro's good hand.

Go on and try to attack. I'll crush her easily.

Where did Taro learn the sign trick? Ranma saw Genma running away quickly which only intensified his anger. His attention was diverted to Ryoga, his eyes were blazing with fury as he removed several bandannas.

"What're ya doin'? You'll hit Kasumi!" the pigtailed boy tried to get through to the boy, but his words bounced off as a look of intense concentration settled on his features. Taro hitched up his grip on the gentle girl's torso causing her to squeal in pain, which only intensified his resolve.

"You're goin' down." the Lost Boy sounded like he was using the Soul of Ice as his aura abruptly turned a strange glowing green. Unlike his normal depression aura it seemed to fill him with strength and confidence. Time seemed to slow to a stop as he brought the charged shuriken up to his face, eyes closing slowly. The focus was plain on Ryoga's face.

"Try this on for size... Cross Shuriken!" he snarled softly before exploding into motion. The bandannas shot out in eight directions, arcing outward before flying back with lethal intent. Taro shoved Kasumi forward as he vaulted backward to avoid the attack.

You only get what you deserve! his sign gloated before he noticed the shuriken cross in front of Kasumi, but not touch her. Mentally he wondered what the hell was going on before Ryoga's next shout caught him off guard.

"Reverse Cross Shuriken!" the shurikens' arc changed, rather then sticking in the ground the came back at him again, whistling through the air with a lethal hum. "They will follow you until they strike their target!" Ryoga shouted. Taro had no time to ponder the meaning of the words before his word exploded in pain. As the shuriken struck, rather then cutting into him, they released what felt like eight Shi Shi Hokdans all over his body. The Lost Boy dropped to his knees from the effort.

"I'll finish 'em buddy." Ranma vowed, amazed at the skill he was just shown, before his attention went back to Taro. The sinister chimera was barely able to stand, but the fury was clear in his eyes. Ukyou vaulted in to snatch Kasumi out of harm's way. The poor girl was sobbing in fright. The pigtailed boy's fury caused his aura to reach unbelievable heights, his pigtail undid itself causing his hair to frame his face. Each step caused the pavement to crack beneath his feet as small debris floated up, blazing in a corona of power.

"What ever happened to the martial artist's code? Do you follow it only when it conveniences you? I live it, bitch, and I respect it. You hurt Kasumi. You hurt anyone who gets in your way. I'm gonna make you squeal." he snarled viciously. The same air of determination that saw him through the fight with Saffron was clearly in evidence. Without even a second's warning, he pushed off on his right foot, sailing straight into Taro with a powerful shoulder ram that hurled the massive beast clear down the street, causing him to smash into ground with bone shattering force. By the looks of the way he was getting up, several bones were shattered. The startled looks he was receiving failed to penetrate his aura of rage. No one had ever seen Ranma knock the chimera down like that. Taro's cursed form was blessed with greater strength and endurance, but suffered from a lack of speed and agility. Those same traits that had seen him through a fight before simply failed to help him here. With a startled, "Moo!" he tried to fly away, but his wings were broken. He was essentially helpless should the irate boy decide to finish him off. What surprised him most was Ranma standing over him with cold eyes, but the deathblow never came.

"Leave Taro. Leave and don't return. There's been enough violence today and I ain't gonna kill ya." With that, he turned and walked away, his hair still flowing in the invisible wind of his power. Now the Chinese boy had truly seen death and was even more scared for experiencing it. Perhaps he could join a nice monastery. The great injured beast slumped down the street. Forever changed for the better.

/-

Cologne watched as the loser stumbled down the street just below the building she was watching. It was an unnerving experience, to be sure, but it was certainly educational. Son-in-Law had grown even stronger then she could imagine. Certainly the one who could defeat Saffron, let alone kill him, was a great warrior indeed, but this recent development weighed on her mind. It was with a heavy heart that she came to a decision that would change her plans forever. Setting Taro upon them had been a grave mistake. She had merely told him that Ukyou would know a way to get Happosai to change his name and let him loose.

"What have I done? There is no way I can make this right, but to simply tell him the truth. It simply is impossible to continue pursuing him even if he would make a valuable addition to the tribe." She murmured to herself. It was time to face the music.

/-

The store actually didn't take much time to get back in shape. A number of tables and chairs had been demolished, but in Nerima having multiple spares is the norm. The kitchen area was demolished, but once again living in Nerima taught Ukyou to have a backup for everything. Ryoga was stretched out in one of the booths, his injuries hurting anew from recent exertions. Ranma was helping Konatsu get the replacement tables and chairs while Kasumi was helping Ukyou to cook a victory meal. It was actually somewhat festive and spirits ran high.

"If they gave a prize for belly-achin' you win first prize, Ryoga!" Ranma quipped good-naturedly. The Lost Boy growled something back, but couldn't help being in a good mood either.

"That was kinda impressive Ryoga. I didn't know ya had it in ya." Ukyou complimented him as she served him another okonomiyaki. Kasumi merely beamed happily at him, causing him to blush to the roots of his hair. They had already complimented Ranma about fighting Taro until his ego had swelled to over five times normal size, but genuine modesty kicked in and he admitted that Ryoga had created the opening; which is why there were so many compliments being hurled in his direction. The fanged boy probably could have made a Mouko Takabisha to rival Ranma's. The Tendo house was called so that everyone would know where Kasumi was and to extend invitations to the party.

'Who would of thought we'd all be here throwin' a party together, eh?' Ranma asked a cheerful Birdy. 'Normally we're fightin' each other so much that we can't have fun.'

'I know what ya mean. From your memories I can tell that ya rarely get a break.' Birdy replied before her cheerfulness vanished. 'Someone's coming. The person has a high amount of chi.' She was pleased with herself for learning how to detect chi.

'That would be Cologne. Don't worry, she's probably just curious about what's goin' on.' He said as the door opened. Everyone was sitting at some tables that had been joined with the booth table to include Ryoga. The party atmosphere was killed and then shot repeatedly just by seeing the look on her face.

"Pardon me for bothering you." She said.

"Not at all! Would you like to sit down?" Ukyou trying to be the gracious hostess.

"I'm sorry, but this is rather important." Everyone turned to listen. "I was curious about Ranma's new abilities. So I sent Mousse to investigate." Ranma's face turned grim.

"If ya wanted to know ya coulda tried askin' ya old Ghoul" his tone was rude, surprisingly the Elder flinched.

"I didn't know if you would have told me, but Mousse told me of how he asked Ryoga to help him." The Lost Boy propped himself up from where Kasumi had been feeding him. His face was contorted with anger.

"Help? He left me to fight Ranma alone! Then I find out it wasn't even Ranma I was fighting!" the gentle girl managed to get the powerful boy to relax. That answer surprised Cologne, but no one was going to clarify so she pressed on. The crowd was growing angrier and angrier as she explained her plan to them. Surprisingly, only Ranma stayed calm, even if his eyes had a calculating look to them.

'Are you sure?' he asked Birdy.

'Positive. She shows all the signs of recent possession. I think the alien is still inside her.' The police girl said.

'How do we separate them?' the pigtailed one asked.

'Well, she looks like she could handle a good jolt. The Hyper Resolve, set low, should fix the problem.'

'Sounds like a plan.'

"Are you even listenin' to her, Ranchan? She just confessed to nearly getting' us killed!" Ucchan exclaimed angrily.

"Oh I'm listenin'… I think she knows what she did was wrong so I hope she understands. Why I'm doin' this." He stood up fluidly causing the Elder to step back in apprehension. Before she could flee, however, Ranma moved so fast it looked like he teleported and grabbed the diminutive matriarch and letting, following Birdy's instructions, unleashed the Hyper Resolve.

"Ranma!" Kasumi cried out in horror as the elder began jerking violently at his treatment of the old woman until she saw another entity separating. With revulsion, the thing was recognized as looking like a giant earwig.

'Grab it now!' Birdy shouted. The pigtailed wonder grabbed and yanked the hideous creature out before whipping it across the room. The abused Elder was treated more gently as she was handed off to Konatsu.

"Keep an eye on her… This thing's mine." He spoke in a voice that brooked no contradiction.

'Oh contraire… I'll handle this punk. You fought the last alien.' Before Ranma could argue, he was forced to upend a glass of cold water over his head, turning into Birdy. Ranma sulked until she explained that he could watch and see what she learned as well as correct her mistakes. The earwig was understandably shocked.

"B-Birdy?" it grated out in surprise.

"The one and only…" she grinned in anticipation of the fight. Obviously, the boy was rubbing off on her. Before the alien could rush to a new victim, a powerful snap kick sent it flying out into the street through the plywood covering the demolished storefront. The insectoid snarled in hate as it started to get up, only to be flattened again by a flying elbow drop.

'Never taught ya that…' Ranma said in astonishment.

'Gotta learn to improvise!' Birdy replied back with almost manic glee before trading blows with the creature so fast their limbs became a blur. For every one strike the earwig made, roughly a hundred from Birdy connected. Despite the greater frequency of hits, he was relatively unphased.

'That thing's shell is like heavy armor! We can't break that!' Birdy exclaimed, nursing bruised knuckles.

'Focus on one spot and keep striking. There's two plates on the chest joined at the center. Hit that!' Ranma instructed. The police girl nodded before launching back into the fray, using her powerful repeating kicks at the thing's chest. Ranma boggled as their ki surged through the roof, her aura blazing, just as she broke the sound barrier.

"Katchu Tenshin Amaguriken-Revised!" she cried just as her leg flashed brightly, slamming into the rapidly developing weak-point. It couldn't even dodge as all the blows struck in under a second. She hopped back, her abused leg numb from the striking, and watched in fascination as the earwig tried to move forward before the chest exploded. It roared in pain and anger as it collapsed to the ground, green ichor spreading from the wound. Birdy brought out her little device and pressed the button. The alien was encased in the same black sphere that took off with Geedo. With a gasp of relief, she sagged to the ground before squealing with pain as her leg cramped up.

'Nice job on that technique…Gotta remember that. Also, ya never relax until ya stretch your legs to prevent cramps.' Ranma told her sagely. She wished that she had some hot water to let him deal with the damn pain, but didn't have the energy.

'Oh go soak your head…' she muttered as sudden weariness claimed her.

/-

Akane watched TV with growing misgivings. She was absolutely positive something was going to happen, but couldn't remember much after she passed out. The show she was watching was suddenly interrupted by a special bulletin. The report concerned another violent attack downtown. They told about the battle between Ranma and Taro, but what got her attention was that Kasumi had been endangered and that Ryoga saved her.

"Wow… Never thought that would happen." She muttered until they proceeded to talk about the fight after that when a giant earwig tore apart Ucchan's just after Taro did. The reporter showed an image of Birdy just after she defeated the killer alien as well as the bucket of hot water that turned her into Ranma. Suddenly the buzzing returned with even greater power.

"So that's it! That's the connection!" the dark voice exclaimed before laughing with glee. Akane twitched before collapsing sideways on the couch, blood running from her nose as her eyes turned glassy.

"The time for games is over… Gomez, initiate the final part of the plan. **NOW**!" was all Revi said before fully possessing Akane.

'NOOOOOO!' Akane screamed into her mind only to hear the mocking laughter all around her.

'Let's play.' Revi said before her sinister laughter filled the house.

The End

Author's Notes: I appreciate all the reviews I've been getting, but I have something to say to one person in particular. Why did you say 'You idiot' and not even give me a reason? If there was a problem then you should have told me what it was so I could correct it. If the problem was with the whole story then I'm sorry if you don't like it and tough luck. For those of you enjoying this story, I'm planning several more chapters. Constructive criticism is always appreciated and pointless flames are hated. Have a good day everybody and ja ne!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty.

Author's Notes: Hello again and welcome to another exciting installment of RtM! Working hard day and night to provide you with piping hot fanfiction. Time to get on with the show!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 5

Take up the Gauntlet

Dinner that night was a pleasant affair. Kasumi always enjoyed entertaining guests, but her attention to Ryoga went beyond the norm. It was obvious to anyone with eyes what was going on, but somehow the Lost Boy remained oblivious. There was no fighting at the table and even Akane remained cheerful. She seemed to be doting on Ranma, making sure he had seconds and watching him with a faintly rapt expression. The pigtailed boy was actually eating at a normal pace and not doing his impression of a human vacuum cleaner. Nabiki, for once, wasn't trying to make money off of anyone. The fathers were contemplating their usual idiocy, silently planning a double wedding after observing the looks being tossed around.

'Sure is a nice night.' Ranma thought as he polished off his fourth plate.

'And the food's good. Can't complain about that. What's going on with Akane? She doesn't seem to be herself.' Birdy thought back. The young martial artist sat back reflectively, still continuing the flow of food to his mouth before looking over to his fiancée.

"What is it Ranma?" Akane asked in a sweet and oh-so-concerned voice. The boy blinked.

"Who are you and what have you done to Akane?" Ranma asked in surprise. Rather then the normal red aura springing to life, however, the girl looked deeply upset. Her eyes wide with unshed tears.

"C-can't I be nice to my fiancé?" she asked with a tremor in her voice. Somehow the boy immediately knew this wasn't Akane, but before he could say anything the imposter fled the room sobbing.

"Smooth Saotome." Nabiki commented dryly while everyone stared at the Anything Goes heir with mixed reactions. The one foremost on everyone's face was anger, except Kasumi, she was looking where her sister had gone with a contemplative look.

"How dare you make my baby girl cry?" Soun roared as he shifted into full demon head mode. It scared Ranma shitless like it always did, but Birdy soothed him enough that he didn't immediately flee.

"That wasn't Akane! When has she ever been that nice to me? Even when I don't do anything wrong she blames me for something!" the beleaguered boy tried to explain but his father overrode him.

"You just don't want to admit that she's growing up and you're still being a brat!" the fat patriarch growled.

"I ain't a brat! Who knows her better? You or me? Didn't anyone **else** see anything wrong with the way she was acting?" Ranma pleaded with the family.

"You're just mad cuz ya can't attack her like ya usually do!" Ryoga fumed. The whole conversation degenerated into a shouting match that only Kasumi and Ranma didn't participate in. Even Akane came back to throw her two cents in before fleeing, sobbing to her room.

"**ENOUGH!**" the Tendo patriarch yelled before leveling a stern glare upon Ranma. "I have had enough of this. You are not welcome in my house until such time as you see fit to apologize. Get your things together." was all he said before turning his back and going to the shogi board.

"Don't even bother going to your mother. She doesn't need to be burdened by disrespectful trash." Genma said before sitting opposite his friend. The two began to play like nothing was happening.

"Nice knowin' ya Saotome. See ya at school tomorrow." Nabiki said before heading back to her ledgers. The boy hung his head in shame, slumping up the stairs with barely enough energy to move. Kasumi reached out to him before crying. The Lost Boy curiously found he couldn't even gloat as he saw the gentle girl crying.

"I'm so sorry..." she repeated it like a mantra. Ryoga wasn't good with crying girls, but he held her anyway.

"Why are you sorry?" he asked her quietly. "He brought it on himself."

"Y-you don't understand... That was Akane from when she was little, but that wasn't her now. That girl couldn't have been her..." the eldest girl wept. It took some time for the bandanna boy to digest this information, but when he did he came to a conclusion. The correct conclusion for once.

"Of course you would know. Don't worry because I, Ryoga Hibiki, will get to the bottom of this!" he declared, but before he could run off, Kasumi held him tighter.

"Please don't leave me. If you leave now, it could be months before you return. Remember the last time you were here and I sent you for milk?" she asked.

"Uh...speaking of that..." he showed her the milk. She wrinkled her nose.

"That's what I was smelling. I thought Ranma forgot to take a bath again." there was nothing that could be said in response to that.

/-

'Something's not right about all this. We need to stay and investigate.' Birdy pleaded. She hated sounding weak, but maybe begging would work where threats had failed.

'If there is, we'll be back, but I refuse to apologize for merely talking. I put my foot in my mouth a lot and I get what I deserve, but I am **not** taking the fall for crap that isn't my fault! End of discussion.' he said as he stuffed his backpack even fuller after removing the weights to give him more room. Slinging the pack onto his back, he stalked out of the room. The person he came face to face with was Akane. Something strange seemed to pass through the girl's eyes before a twisted smile dominated.

"Have fun dear fiancé." she said, mockingly. The pigtailed boy halted.

"You did this on purpose." it wasn't a question.

"Goodbye Birdy! Take care of this stupid pervert, ok?" she said conversationally before heading back into her room. Birdy seethed at Ranma being called a pervert.

'Why am I taking offense at this? It was directed at him, not me. Why do I care?' she thought privately. Ranma suddenly felt his chest tighten, but not from a heart attack. It was the kind of tightness you get when you're sad.

'Birdy? Are you ok?' he asked.

'...I'm fine. Let's get outta here.' with that, Ranma left the Tendo-ke for parts unknown.

/-

Birdy suggested that the two of them go to her spaceship. The journey across town was silent since neither one of them needed to speak their feelings. The boy felt lost. He wanted to go to his mother but his Pops was right. She didn't need this garbage dropped in her lap. Why didn't anyone stick up for him? The only one who did was Birdy, but her word wasn't good enough for them, he thought.

"Why?" he screamed to the sky. That one word was full of questions and pain. Why doesn't anyone listen to me? Why can't anyone trust me? The list of questions was endless, but the most predominant question was: Why me? He couldn't allow himself to cry at the injustice, but that didn't stop Birdy from crying for him.

They reached the junkyard where she stashed her craft and slipped through the familiar hatch. Ranma had learned the code from seeing it once. Once inside, he staggered to the chamber with the holographic device and collapsed. With a shuddering breath, he tried to steady himself, but couldn't. All his pain collapsed on him with the force of one of Ryoga's punches and drove away his resistance. The tears fell down like rain as he thought over his life.

'I suffer for the Art and it's useless right now. I suffer for my father's stupidity and I'm useless. I suffer for...Akane...and I'm forced to suffer even more. Why can't anyone let me be happy? They make me think about them before I can think about myself and I'm the self-centered one...' his thoughts began to spiral until they were almost black with depression, but Birdy would have none of that.

'Stop it, Ranma! Why do you always take on everyone's guilt? You're suffering only because you allow yourself to suffer. Please stop... It is time you thought about yourself. Is pain what you're after? If it's not then make your own decisions. The greatest dishonor is not following your own heart.' he realized she was crying as well. The tears running down his face were no longer his alone. He hugged his legs to his chest, hugging himself and Birdy. The loneliness wasn't as large a chasm as they thought it was, but merely a gap. With a small sigh, the events of the day caught of up with him. Before drifting off to sleep one thought occupied both their minds: 'I'm not alone anymore.'

/-

Ranma was training in the least used room of the ship. It was supposed to be used to hone your skills, but Birdy never got around to going in there so the dust was quite thick. The first thing he had done was clean the room and set it up properly. He flowed from one kata to another effortlessly, gradually picking up the pace until only mere blurs were seen. His dreams had been pretty nice, actually. It was an impossible dream, but it was a nice one. He recalled it easily as Birdy continued to sleep.

It was a beautiful day. The sky was a brilliant blue and the sun shown down warmly. A truly great day to be alive. He was laying in the grass, waiting for someone. He absently noted the time and thought 'She's late.' before the sound of someone approaching broke into his reverie.

"Sorry I'm late." the girl said as she laid down beside him, snuggling into his side.

"It's okay." he remembered saying as he held her close. The smell of warm grass and lilies filled his nose as he kissed the top of her head. Her hair was red with locks of different colors. She looked up and smiled at him before rolling on top of him playfully. She cuddled up into his chest, filling his stomach with butterflies. Her beautiful face was mere centimeters from his as they slowly drew together. An eternity seemed to pass before their lips touched and the dream ended in a flash of light.

'Whoa. What were you thinking about?' Birdy said with humor in her voice. The pigtailed martial artist realized he'd stopped and caught himself staring into space just before the panic set in.

'I'm sorry! It's not what you think!' he went into full panic mode before she shushed him.

'It's alright... It was a nice dream...' she sounded wistful, the longing clearly heard in her voice. 'Too bad it can't happen...' she thought privately, struggling to contain her feelings. 'Even if it could, he's honor bound to marry Akane...'

'As you said yourself, the greatest dishonor would be in not following my heart. The schools could be joined simply by me teaching Akane and Akane teaching me.' he said. Birdy was flabbergasted.

'Y-you could hear my private thoughts?' she sounded a little scandalized.

'There really are no private thoughts between us. Why do you think I wait til you go to sleep before trying to think privately?' he sounded amused. The ridiculousness of the situation made the two of them laugh just before the alert sounded, letting them know a message was coming. Ranma arrived just in time to find the chief staring at him with some agitation.

"What's up...Chief?" he added that as an afterthought when Birdy mentally kicked him.

"I have some news for the both of you. Your time together is almost over. The procedure will be ready tomorrow by eight o'clock p.m. by your time. It will be the only time that you can do this before another window opens up in another twenty years." the two mentally freaked out over **that** announcement.

"A-anything else?" Ranma asked in a subdued voice.

"Yes, a criminal by the name of Gomez has been spotted in the downtown Tokyo area." he said.

"Be more specific, downtown is a **big** place." Birdy almost kicked him again, but had to admit it was a good idea.

"He was spotted near the Azuretech Labs. You do not have much time." the chief said before terminating the transmission.

"But...! Argh! Oh well... How tough can this Gomez guy be?" Ranma asked no one in particular, but Birdy chose to answer him.

'He's more then strong enough to defeat me.' she admitted.

'That's you **alone**, but not with me helping you. We can handle anyone together.' the pigtailed one thought back reassuringly. The girl nodded.

'But it had better be me that he sees first. If worst comes to worst, I'll hand it over to you. Fair?' Birdy asked.

'Deal, but be careful. I care if you get hurt.' He got a glass of cold water from a replication machine and splashed himself. It took energy to become the other side of the curse. Birdy shook out her hair before activating the skintight bodysuit that she arrived in.

'Time to play.' she said with a grin before taking off.

/-

Back at the Tendo house, the mystery was mounting rapidly. Akane had somehow managed to get past Kasumi and into the kitchen, but where a nuclear waste should have been, they had breakfast. What scared these stout souls the most was the fact that it tasted great. Not quite up to Kasumi's standard, but it was good enough to serve the Emperor without embarrassment. Soun cried over the delicious food and nearly soaking everyone else's plates as he wailed about his baby girl finally cooking well. This was the definitive proof that the girl wasn't Akane, but the only ones who realized this were the teens. Something about the food made even Ryoga shy away from it. With speed and dexterity, he made it look as if Kasumi and Nabiki were eating while simultaneously transferring their food to the fathers' plates. It should be noted that he isn't as fast as Ranma, but after always trying to nail the pigtailed boy he had become quite a bit faster.

"Akane dear this is excellent! It doesn't matter what that little idiot says, you are terrific!" Soun said with delight as he tried to figure out why he suddenly had more food. Genma merely kept scarfing down the chow as fast as it reached his plate. By the end of it, the Lost Boy was slightly drained, but satisfied that he saved worthwhile lives through his actions.

"I gotta go to school!" Nabiki exclaimed. She needed to leave if she was going to have time to get a decent meal.

"Oh my! I have some books I need to return!" Kasumi said as well, having the same thought as her sister.

"Whoo! I'm stuffed… Time to pound that pig-headed jerk!" The Lost Boy needed real food and not whatever "Akane" was serving.

"Give 'em a thrashing for us!" Genma said cheerfully. Somehow, the fat patriarch's actions chilled them to the bone. It was with relief that the three of them left the house as fast as humanly possible.

/-

Akane frowned pensively as her sisters and the powerfully built boy left. She was certain that they had eaten the food she prepared, but they seemed to be perfectly all right. The idiot fathers were enjoying their meal, thinking it was the height of culinary excellence. Her cooking hadn't changed in the slightest, but she finally had the recipe correct. What everyone had assumed was that Akane couldn't cook. The truth was, she could cook, but it was Revi's attempts at a mind control substance that made her food inedible. In all honesty, they probably would end up vomiting half of it and diarrhea to remove the other half.

"At least the drug is effective." She shrugged, pleased with herself immensely. There was something strange about cooking for one's family and seeing them happily eating that cheered her. Better squash those feelings immediately or she might lose her edge.

'It's my body and I'll get it back. Ranma can't save me from myself. That poor baka…" she thought sadly. 'That ignorant little $#& has turned me into a monster! I'll cram my feelings down your throat and make you feel what a human feels. Love for family seems to weaken you pretty good… How about some memories of mother?'

"Mom was a great cook. She was so beautiful and graceful. She was so great, able to do anything she put her mind to and told us to always follow our heart." More unwanted feelings and memories began seeping in, making her feel warm and happy, even a little sad. She tried to fight them off, but the more she fought, the stronger they seemed to become. In a storm of tears, she fled the dining area to go to her room, where she fell asleep instantly. Thoughts of mother and a certain pigtailed boy tormenting her in her sleep. What somehow hurt most was neither father noticed her crying.

'I have to win or Ranma will never beat this challenge. He could electrocute Cologne easily, but he wouldn't do that to me… He wouldn't hurt me like that. So, I'm on my own against her, no problem. Akane Tendo don't lose!' she thought fiercely as she continued her silent assault.

/-

The two Tendo sisters and Lost Boy walked towards the school slowly, each lost in their own thoughts. Akane's "good cooking" looked okay, but Ryoga could tell it was the same. His sharper nose picked up the odor of a toxic waste dump, but the fathers were eating it as if it was manna from heaven. Kasumi was holding his hand, merely to prevent him from wandering off, she insisted as Nabiki rolled her eyes. It was too bad that this was a bad time to start a relationship or the mercenary girl would have been happy for her.

"Are you sure that wasn't Akane?" Kasumi asked the Lost Boy.

"Absolutely positive. She didn't become a stellar cook overnight and it still smelled like something the U.S. would claim was a biological weapon. Nope, that ain't her." He concluded firmly.

"She was also too nice to Ranma. I just hope he doesn't have a bad reaction to that garbage." Nabiki said thoughtfully. "Whether we want to admit it or not, we're going to need him and Birdy to get to the bottom of this." Her idea was a good one, but they drew a blank as to finding the conjoined duo. As they passed alone, a shape loomed overhead, watching them closely.

"Party time…" a girl's voice said just before dropping softly to the street.

The End

Author's Notes: Whee! Another chapter done and it's a doozy! I'm working on the next chapter already to continue bringing you more of what you desire! More action, more violence, more mayhem, and even more romance! I'll see you next time! Ja ne!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: The only thing I own is the clothes on my back and the shoes on my feet. Simply put, don't sue me!

Author's Notes: Are you ready for more? Cuz I'm ready to deliver! I'm a little hyper right now. If anyone's wondering, yes this story is also a Ryoga/Kasumi pairing. Then again, I'm not telling you anything new am I? Ah well, might as well get on with the show!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 6

Rise to Battle

People under the impression that Ranma is the sole source of chaos in Nerima would be sadly mistaken. It's really not Ranma's own chaos magnet that draws in the strange activity, but also the ward itself attracts the stranger elements. This time, the wonderful place this all happens in decided to pick a new avatar, simply to give itself a break. Poor Ryoga is about to discover what it's like to be the Kami's whipping boy. As the three traveled down the street, blissfully unaware that something was going to happen, a sinister figure was stalking them. The girl trailing them had been told not to allow any of them to escape and she did enjoy following orders. Without a sound, she rushed forward to take out the strongest of the three. Her lips pulled back in a feral grin before her forward motion was arrested by an immovable object. Ryoga Hibiki a.k.a. Immovable Object Personified, felt a terrible slam in the small of his back, but the Breaking Point training had made him all but unstoppable except by a handful of people.

"What the hell?" he said to no one in particular as he spun around, only to be nailed in the face by a powerful metal fist that drove him backwards before he got his feet in place. Kasumi and Nabiki were huddling in a doorway and doing what anyone in Nerima should do when a fight breaks out. Take cover and pray for deliverance.

"Miss Revi wants you dead and I always follow orders." The woman said. Her face was strangely colored; her eyes definitely weren't human. Her figure was female, but no one would mistake her for a woman. The "woman" grinned crookedly at the Lost Boy.

"You won't get by me." Ryoga growled.

"Let's see about that! Feel the force of Undine!" the woman cried as she rushed forward, fist cocked back to deliver a terrific haymaker. With a loud "Kiyaa!" she threw her fist forward, aiming for his face, before a dull slap was heard. Her grin slid off her face as she noticed that her fist had been caught by the Lost Boy's powerful hand.

"Not good enough." Was all she heard before a devastating right tore the breath from her artificial lungs. Another vicious right plowed into her metal skull, tearing her synthetic flesh off before with an almost negligent flip, he released her captured hand and threw her back several yards.

"Wh-what kind of monster are you?" she asked in a frightened voice.

"Tch! I'm the monster here, huh? Fine then… Can you slay this beast?" he said before arrogantly tapping his chest. The humanoid knew she was in trouble as a low rumble started in his chest. The primal sound signified the beginning of the end of Undine as the powerfully built boy charged her at full speed. She flinched away from what she knew was coming before a startled "Bwee!" was heard and something small slapped into her.

The ladle lady had struck again.

"Well! I forgot about your curse! Good thing for me that you didn't plan for this. Time to fry me up some bacon." She gloated before chasing the scared piglet.

'Role reversals are a bitch.' Ryoga thought despairingly as he ran from his now unstoppable foe.

/-

Across town, Birdy was enjoying the freedom of roof hopping. She could leap up maybe two or three stories and fall roughly double that before, but with Ranma, she was leaping to the tops of twenty story office buildings. The chief probably hadn't anticipated the two of them making it across town as fast as they did. Azuretech was just recently built by a giant corporation from overseas that dealt in next level technology. The perfect place for Gomez to strike to gain the equipment they might need for their schemes.

'Be ready for anything.' Birdy told Ranma as they neared their destination.

'I'm always ready!' he thought back excitedly before almost shouting 'What the hell is that?'

Their gaze fell upon a monstrosity of technical genius and biological nightmare. Birdy could easily identify Revi's standard Arkazoid design, but she couldn't figure out what the green gel was that was oozing out of it. It began to laugh maniacally.

"Officer Birdy! So nice to see you again!" its horribly distorted voice seemed to emphasize the wrong words. The creature sounded like it was talking from underwater.

"I don't know you." She replied as she slipped into a loose stance.

"Hmm! Learned a few things, eh? For those of you who don't remember me, I am Rauvalumingo!" it laughed again as Birdy paled.

"You're the bastard who killed all those people on Excterra-7!" she grated out in fury as she remembered what he had done. He had convinced a large group of locals he was a child caught in a sump tank before devouring them with his blob-like body. Ranma instantly saw red.

"That was the case you were on, wasn't it? Too bad I couldn't devour you as well, but I'll be sure to rectify that!" the abomination cried as it leapt forward with fluid speed and power that no mere human could match, but a quick blow to the metal face and a lightning fast kick to the chest reminded the enhanced menace that she wasn't human. All she had managed to do, however, was dent the metal body, but the gel kept it all together. What would have flung a lesser being, merely made him quiver like jell-o.

"This time it's gonna be different." she said confidently as the two proceeded to trade blows at speeds exceeding the sound barrier, the crack of the sonic booms causing the roof to crack slightly. Birdy was pleased to note how much more durable she was with Ranma, but the constant strikes were wearing on her.

'Put some distance between you two! He's not taking the damage that you are!' Ranma tried to reason with her just moments before a particularly brutal blow sent them flying off the roof into the alley below. Their uncontrolled fall would have been cushioned by the dumpster below, if it had been open. The squeal of tortured metal was heard; the injured body barely able to move.

'I'm...sorry...' she thought weakly.

'Relax Birdy, just relax... It'll be okay.' he soothed as he began dumping ki into their already enhanced healing. The wounded police woman saw, just before she felt, the monster's descent as she felt herself driven into the empty dumpster.

"Ahhhh!" she screamed as tortured ribs snapped and tendons ripped. It took all of Ranma's ki control to keep them alive and healing. The metal monster picked her up by her throat, slowly crushing her larynx. Bringing her up eye to eye with him.

"So delectable...I wonder how you taste, you certainly look delicious." a green gel tongue came out and trailed along her face suggestively. The captured girl shuddered away instinctively from the lewd action, infuriating Ranma. Her aura was fading rapidly; the beast could feel her strength diminishing.

"Time to eat!" it cackled before oozing out from the Arkazoid, slipping over her, capturing her as if she was stuck in taffy. Birdy couldn't even struggle as it tried to force her mouth open to better drain her life force.

'Ran-ma...I'm so-rry...' she thought weakly as darkness began slipping over her.

'I won't let you die! C'mon, hold on!' he thought frantically to her as he felt her slip away. 'This bastard has a lot to answer for! Don't die, Birdy!' he roared in their mind just before taking over the body and drawing in his ki. The alien criminal was stunned at the amount of power he could suddenly feel from the broken woman.

"No matter what you try, you're almost dead and nothing can change that." he said confidently just as he felt the cold seeping into his 'body'. The swirling cold was coming from Birdy! If he knew what the Soul of Ice was capable of then he would have spit her out right there and went to find someone less capable of fighting back, like Happosai, but there was no time. Ice began growing outward from Birdy, freezing his gel body into immobility. After another several seconds, her body weakening rapidly, he was solid.

'Just...gotta...break out...' Ranma felt his own consciousness fading before using one last burst of strength to use the Breaking Point, shattering the sphere of goo into a thousand pieces. The life force of the monster destroyed by the intense cold.

'We're out...' he thought, satisfied, just as he finally succumbed to the darkness.

/-

"Come on out lil' piggy! I just wanna burn you, maim you, kill you, and desecrate your grave... Nothing too bad!" she was starting to sound even more insane then when she first began the assault. Ryoga had somehow managed to vanish into thin air, but that didn't stop her from trying to hunt him down.

"What are we going to do Nabiki? She's going to kill Ryoga!" Kasumi was definitely panicking, but Nabiki couldn't think of anything to calm her down. With an exclamation of triumph, the evil machine held P – chan aloft, laughing maniacally.

"Finally got you! So many things that I can do to you..." she cradled the terrified pig almost lovingly before clenching her hand on him and slowly turned him over.

"First! Let's try neutering you!" the pig's terrified squeals could be heard all up and down the street before her action was stopped by a powerful mallet strike to the head. She dropped the relieved porker to look in fury at the whoever would dare hit her. What she found was the terrified elder girl holding a huge mallet. With a negligent backhand she tossed the girl into a parked car, crumpling the door and watching with satisfaction as she slid off in a boneless heap.

"Kasumi-chan!" Nabiki cried as she rushed over to check on her sister. Ryoga just stood and stared, already mentally seeing the injuries, even injuries that weren't even there. The hairs on his little body stood on end in rage, his aura so powerful it buckled the pavement.

"Two for one... I guess this will do..." she laughed as long blades suddenly shot out from her fingertips.

'If Ranma could do it... Why can't I at least try?' with a low sound that seemed ridiculous coming from a baby pig, he began bringing his aura to bear on the problem of his curse. Ryoga knew he didn't have much time, but it kept slipping away from him. With a despairing cry he lunged forward, intent on doing something besides standing there uselessly. 'Kasumi! Nabiki!' he thought furiously before a loud roar was torn from his throat "I won't let anyone hurt you!" the suddenly vocal outburst went unnoticed by the enraged Lost Boy, but the effect on Undine was electrifying.

"Wh-what is this?" she cried out in shock just before her body was torn asunder by an empowered right, her arms exploded out from her body as her suddenly caved in chest imploded, simulated bodily fluids flying out from her mouth and nose. Her ruined vocal unit could only make a weird squealing sound before the left fist blew her head away. Undine's total destruction took mere seconds, but to the witnesses it seemed to take forever. A drop of synthetic blood splashed Kasumi's face and time resumed.

"Kasumi..." the Lost Boy said as he fell to his knees beside her, taking her hand, just before feeling the squeeze.

"...I am a martial artist's daughter..." she said with a weak grin before nearly getting plowed under by her relieved sister and the fanged martial artist. All three laughing in relief.

/-

Revi woke up shortly before lunch, feeling as if she had not slept a wink. The dreams wouldn't leave her alone and she couldn't figure out why.

"Knew I should have wiped her memories before integration." she muttered as she felt a headache starting from lack of sleep. These dreams had been the worst to date. It was all her thoughts and feelings about the boy that the alien woman was having fun tormenting. All the love, trust, and hope he filled her with. Also how sad she was knowing that because of her own strange actions they would never be anything more then friends.

"Dammit. I knew reading that Shoujo manga was a mistake." she muttered peevishly before her communicator beeped, providing a much needed distraction.

"Gomez report." she ordered.

"Birdy has been neutralized. I detected her life signature extinguish five minutes ago." he said.

"Excellent news! What about Undine?"

"She has been terminated. Salamander requests permission to take over the job." that shook Revi. How could three mere humans stop Undine?

"Tell him to terminate with extreme prejudice. They should be sufficiently weakened. Anything else to report?"

"Nothing at this time. Over and out." the connection was terminated, but Revi was cheered considerably by the news. The ruse had worked and Birdy was dead which meant that Ranma was dead as well. She giggled in delight before catching herself.

"Akane no Baka." she muttered, unconsciously saying it. Inside of her mind, Akane was panicking. Ranma? Dead? Impossible! She almost gave up until she thought about Saffron and then she began the evil laughter.

'What about the cry to the heavens that awakened me? I was dead, but Ranma brought me back with a ki-enhanced yell. What about that?' she planted the seeds of doubt in the alien's mind as the woman made her way back downstairs to cook lunch, badly.

/-

Ranma felt the world intrude upon his awareness as he gradually came back to the land of the living. He noticed he was male again as he sat up, but felt curiously hollow. When he tried to ask Birdy what was going on, only silence greeted him.

'Birdy? C'mon Birdy! Don't play with me like this! Please wake up!' he thought frantically. There was no time to check out the building, he had to get back to the ship immediately. With weak legs, he stood up. His ki was practically gone which surprised him until he realized whose body this was. If Birdy dies then he'd die too. Without her, his ki was drying up. He forced himself to the bus stop and climbed aboard for the ride. Thankful that he still had some money left. He went into a semi-meditative state, using their waning ki to keep her alive.

'I don't care if I die, just don't take her down with me.' he prayed.

A few bus changes later, he was stumbling wearily towards the hatch of the ship. The junkyard seemed to grow further and further away as his wobbly legs gave out beneath him.

'Kuso! C'mon! Ya can't fail now! Ranma Saotome don't lose!' he repeated it like a mantra, crawling towards perceived salvation. He was almost there.

"Ranma? What are you doing here? You're being a delinquent! I better drag you back to school." it was the most feared voice in all of Furinkan. Miss Hinako. She pulled out a fifty-yen piece and aimed it at him.

"No! Please don't do it! If you drain me then I'll die!" he tried to shout, but only a dull sounding whisper came out. The child teacher quirked an eyebrow.

"Now I'm beginning to think it might be something perverted too. Why are you making sucking faces?" the now deadly looking coin pointed at him again before it was struck away with a shuriken. The stunned teacher stared in shock at a figure in a white robe, leveling an angry glare upon her.

"Leave Saotome alone, vampire. In case you haven't noticed, he's weak enough right now to die or are you trying to kill him?" Mousse asked in a puzzled voice. Ranma was wondering when the Apocalypse was going to happen. If Mousse was defending him then the end of the world would be happening soon. He lamented that he was still a virgin.

'Whoa! Where'd that come from?' he thought just as he felt a resonating spark. The spark made him feel almost whole again, but his ki was still dangerously weak. He managed to get to his feet with care and decided to leave the two to their fight. The pigtailed boy had a life to save.

Mousse noticed Saotome get up and start walking like a zombie towards the car door with curiosity. What was he looking for? Whatever it was, the Chinese boy decided to buy him some time.

"He's moving! You said he was almost dead. I think you're a delinquent too." she pulled out two coins and pointed them in two directions. The implications were clear.

"Oh well, you got me I suppose..." the boy said as he pushed his glasses up before tossing two, large round shields at Miss Hinako. The two defensive items knocked the coins from her hands before spiraling chains ensnared the startled child. She fell to the ground crying.

"You big meanie! I'm telling!" she wailed like a fire truck as Mousse began frantically untying her, thinking he'd bound her too tight. She still wouldn't stop crying so he began producing teddy bears, dolls, but the only thing that got a response was a huge jar of pocky. She quite happily sat down and began eating the chocolate covered treats, scooting into Mousse's lap. The Chinese boy looked towards Saotome and noticed he was gone. With a sweatdrop, he also realized the child teacher wasn't about to move anytime soon. That was a **big** jar of pocky.

/-

'If I live through this... Someone remind me to thank Mousse... A band to hold his glasses on should do nicely...' Ranma thought as he trudged towards the med bay. He felt the returning energy begin to ebb away as quickly as it came, but he deliberately forced it into his legs to at least keep going. With one last heave, he made it to the healing pod. His fingers tapped weakly at random buttons, not even knowing how it worked. The last time he was here, he was dead. Apparently he did something right as a strange crane-like thing came down and hauled him up like a UFO catcher before dumping him into the healing liquid.

'That's a relief...' he thought as he felt Birdy's ki returning. She was still too weak to talk to him, but he could feel her mental hands reaching out to him. The two floated in companionable silence, words were meaningless.

'I hope we can stay together even after we're separated. What would I do without you?' he remembered the dream he had that Birdy saw and felt not only him, but also her as well yearn for it. He hugged himself tight, wishing he could hug her, and fell asleep.

/-

"Why are you protecting him?" Hinako asked as she nibbled on another stick of pocky.

"I may not be the most respectful Amazon, but I certainly am not disloyal. He saved Cologne yesterday from possession by some sort of demon. I've been looking for him to apologize for my behavior and also to tell him that the old bat dissolved the marriage contract." he said, absently holding the child in his lap. The little girl was looking upward in thought.

"That's as good a reason as any, I suppose, but one thing troubles me. How did he just disappear like that?" she asked.

"Good question." he said in reply as they two of them sat there next to the red car in the junkyard. Little did they know that their answers lay there.

/-

The Tendo sisters looked as if some strange alien monster was following them. It looked as if it was wearing a rain coat and a rain hat with a rain poncho over it, a plastic bag with hold cut out for the eyes, nose, and mouth. A scuba mask covered the face entirely. Duct tape was used to seal a pair of rubber gloves and rubber boots on him. Curiously, they addressed this strange apparition of yellow rubber as Ryoga.

"You look silly." Kasumi said in between giggles.

"Sis has got a point. Why are you wearing that?" Nabiki asked as the figure suddenly manifested a sign.

If another alien attacks I will not turn into a pig again! The figure seemed adamant on this.

"There's nothing to worry about. I don't see any water any water anywhere." no sooner had she said that then a fire hydrant suddenly erupted with a deluge of water that struck Ryoga and strangely missing the girls.

You were saying? Somehow the sign seemed smug. The eldest girl continued to giggle at the look on Nabiki's face.

"How unusual! I expected to find you ladies, but not the yellow blunder following you." a voice called out from behind them before a manhole cover flew at Ryoga, spinning like a discus. A sudden back fist bent the flying object in half on impact. The Lost Boy turned around. The warped metal hit the street with a deafening clang. Ryoga turned his head slowly to fix the young man behind him with a glare that could easily be felt even if he couldn't see the Lost Boy's eyes. The girls unconsciously backed away from the irate boy as he turned to fully engage his opponent.

That was stupid. his sign read. The young man was startled to say the least.

"Well! You are the one I was looking for. I'll kill you for destroying my sister! I am Salamander, brother of Undine." Without further ado, he charged the Yellow Wonder with intent to kill.

One thought was going through his mind. 'This is the brother of the one who almost made my life a true hell.' The pavement cracked beneath his feet, tiny pieces of debris began to float up and take up orbit around his glowing figure. Twin balls of red ki formed in his palms, holding them at his sides. With a cry of absolute rage, he flung his hands forward, sending two streams of anger ki into the rapidly approaching form of Salamander. The humanoid took both blasts head on with a look of shock on his face a second before the attack tore through him, blowing him into chunks of synthetic material and false blood. With the humanoid's death, his anger died as well. The Lost Boy dropped to his knees, weakly trying to yank the hot rain gear off of himself with Kasumi and Nabiki's help. Once freed, he slumped into unconsciousness.

"Ryoga-kun!" Kasumi called softly to him as she examined him.

"Is he okay?"

"He should be, he's just overheated. We need to get him someplace cool." the eldest girl concluded. When they looked around, the first thing they saw was the Nekohanten.

"Go get Shampoo, I'll stay with him." Kasumi said, her younger sister nodded before bolting into the restaurant. The Tendo girl merely cradled Ryoga's head in her lap.

/-

"What is it this time, Gomez?" Revi asked with a sense of misgiving.

"Salamander has been neutralized."

"Dammit! Since your incompetence is what caused this then **you** will go after them and kill them!" she stormed.

"When would you like it done?" her subordinate asked.

"Do it tomorrow night around midnight. We need to hit them when they least expect it. Now leave me be." she snapped waspishly.

Gomez heard the link cut out. That Tendo girl was a poor vessel to use, judging by her temperamental nature. Tonight would be the best time to attack, but perhaps she knows something he doesn't know. It would be just like her, he thought.

"Tomorrow night then. All resistance must be killed." he said grimly before sitting down. One thing just didn't add up, but he couldn't figure out what it was. It could wait.

/-

"Why did I say tomorrow night? I meant tonight. What's going on? Maybe this body just needs more sleep." the alien woman thought as she slipped off into dreamland. 'No more memories... please no more memories...' she thought as her own memories came to the surface of a little girl, years ago, who cried about her friend dying. She remembered it all in vivid detail, right down to the name. Violeen. A sharp stabbing pain throbbed through her cold heart, making it beat with remorse. Once it ended, she thought that was it. Then came other memories flooding back. Most from her own childhood.

'Daddy! Don't do it, please! I love Mommy! Don't kill Mommy! Please!' Revi, barely six years old, watching in terrified comprehension as her father brutally murdered her mother with the instruments of his trade. Since he was a doctor on a slightly rural planet, the methods were gruesome.

'Run honey! Don't stay! Run away! Run awa-AHHHHHH!' there was a hideous screech of metal meeting bone and sickening crunch as things that weren't meant to be removed were. As he turned towards her with the blood implement, a terrible looking electric bone saw, she woke up screaming.

"Mommy! Please don't die Mommy! Please!" the most feared criminal in the galaxy found herself suddenly in the grips of the same terror she'd put countless other victims through. Her pride in tatters, she drew her knees to her chest and wept.

'I hated doing that to you, but you deserved it. You needed to see it and hopefully learn from it. If you want my body then we're going to get to know each other. Whether you like it or not.' Akane thought grimly.

The End

Author's Notes: They never went into Revi's past so I'm allowed some license. Also, will Akane's influences help or hinder our heroes? Hopefully your questions will be answered in the next installment of RtM. Until next time, Ja ne!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty.

Author's Notes: Once again, we are gathered together to partake of more fanfiction. The action's heating up, as problem's are resolved and even more problems surface! For those of you wondering how it became a Ryoga/Kasumi pairing when she doesn't like immature people, think back to the breakfast incident or even think back to the fight with Taro. Ranma and Birdy nearly dying is plausible as well considering they were fighting a giant blob of goo. Just to warn you, I'm labeling the story 'AU'. I hope you enjoy the change of pace! The author's notes are supposed to answer questions I suppose, so I figured I should show you how my mind works. I'm all talked out so I think it's time we got this party started.

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 7

Love and War

The dreams used to plague her mind nightly, driving thoughts of sleep away and sapping her strength. It couldn't have possibly become any worse or so she thought. Lately her thoughts were interrupted by daydreams that called her old memories to mind as well as her current victim's. Every little thing triggered a recollection. Her nerves were in shambles from her recent storm of tears. Fears long suppressed were suddenly brought out with startling clarity. The latest dream was of her mother before she was killed. Memories of lying in her mother's lap in the park, the warm sun shining on her face, and her mother's gentle voice filling her with love. It was so beautiful that she prayed it would never end, but like all good things, this came to an end as well.

"M-mom…How I miss you…If you were still here I'd…" her throat aching from the harsh sobs as she once again hugged her knees to her chest and cried. She wasn't sure if this longing for her dead parent was a result of her host or her own desires. Either way it was effective. Her thoughts were clear, but her emotions were running on overdrive.

'I need to get a grip on myself! I must make the galactic police pay for letting that murderer go! That bastard is still out there because they let him loose! Am I really my father's sin like he said?' Akane actually grew shocked at that. She was growing quite adept at finessing her way into Revi's private thoughts, but there was a block in there that couldn't be looked through.

'What did she mean by 'am I my father's sin?' Is there something I'm not getting here? She remembers Violeen clearly, even if it happened years ago. Some things burn their way into your mind, but she's only interested in the police. Why is she trying to hurt innocent people?' her musings were interrupted by a dark pulse that tore through Revi's mind, sending the already weakened alien woman over the edge into unconsciousness. She fished deeper to find the source of it and discovered it came from the block, but it seemed it was clearing. Before she could probe around it, a burst of bitterness shot out and blasted Akane's mind directly, making her reel in pain.

'…Nothing will stop me…Kill them all…Make them suffer for Mommy…Daddy said it was their fault…Daddy didn't kill Mommy…' a child's voice echoed sickeningly through the trapped girl's brain, battering her hard built mental resistance, but not breaking. As quickly as the assault started it ended, slowly relinquishing control to Revi once more, but she had the vague feeling that things were definitely not as they appeared.

/-

Morning was Ranma's least favorite part of the day because it meant he had to wake up. Sleep was one of his secret pleasures that life with Genma had forced him to hide, but one that he reveled in often. The healing tank was surprisingly comfortable, but maybe it shouldn't have been considering he was floating in liquid. His dreams were definitely pleasant as he thought about he was going to do as soon as he had his own body again. First thing was, ask Birdy out. It would be fun to actually be able to see her face to face; it was also a thrilling thought. Would it be as good to kiss her in real life as it had been in the dream or would it be better? He finally concluded it would be better because he'd actually be able to hold her. It took him some time to figure out why his thoughts had suddenly turned towards romance, but he looked upon it as a sign that Birdy was okay.

'Hey sleepyhead.' he said affectionately. When had he begun thinking about her like that? Sharing a body and a mind seems to have its perks.

'Mmm...Five more minutes...' she protested sleepily before the previous day's events caught up to her. Suddenly, the police girl was wide-awake and taking stock of their surroundings. Her thoughts were racing and it took several minutes to calm her down, whispering assurances to her. Birdy took a few seconds to compose herself before asking him what happened.

'You're not going to like this, but...' He said just before launching into the full explanation. She listened attentively, asking questions for clarification, before breathing a sigh of relief. He had been explaining how the battle ended and his trek across Tokyo, but even though he said all he managed to do was shatter him like glass, she seemed relieved.

'You don't know about his race, but that's okay. They can only live as long as they're liquid. Once their frozen solid, or something else turns them solid, they die. We don't have to worry about him anymore.' she sounded so confident about it that the pigtailed boy relaxed as well.

'Well, we were worried about being here for eight o'clock; it looks like we're stuck in this tank for another couple of hours. Accelerated healing is great, but our ki is still a little low.' Despite the situation, he seemed rather cheerful about it all; Birdy couldn't help but feel the same way. It was easy being happy around him.

'Sorry 'bout not realizing we were in trouble sooner…' she began to apologize before he cut her off.

'Don't worry about it. Really. I woulda probably done the same thing.' He said to ease her agitation. She knew he wasn't lying about it either. Her thoughts drifted over his thoughts while she was sleeping, causing both of them to blush.

'Maybe we could find out if they could do it immediately.' Birdy said hopefully.

'How do we talk to the chief from the healing pod?' Ranma asked curiously.

'Just switch to me.' She sounded confident. Ranma shrugged before expending energy to transform into Birdy. The police girl gave a command in a language that Ranma figured must be her home language before a strange mask lowered into the tank. She slipped it on just as the communication channel was opened to headquarters.

"Megius here." The chief said.

"Hey Chief. The mission was a total failure even if Rauvalumingo was defeated. The only way to win was by killing him." She would have continued the report, except the chief stopped her.

"Birdy, we detected your energy signature disappear. We were about to send a team to get your body, but I'm surprised to know that you're alive. How did you manage it?" he asked.

"There's uh…someone who doesn't want me to die." She could hear the embarrassment in her voice. The chief chuckled knowingly, causing the poor girl to blush even redder. Thankfully, he couldn't see her face or she would have been even more embarrassed.

"You would like to know if we could do the separation faster, correct?" he wasn't the chief for nothing and this was an easy guess. Birdy nodded her head until she remembered that it was a voice-only transmission before confirming what he asked.

"We were able to move it up a few hours, but it still won't be ready until at least five o'clock. Try looking for Revi while we get the equipment set up. Megius, out." He said before the connection was cancelled.

'Yes! Only a couple more hours!' Birdy cheered happily as she gave Ranma a big mental hug and wondering if a physical one would be better. Somehow, she knew it would be. The pigtailed boy laughing at her antics, hoping nothing would go wrong in the meantime.

'Only a couple more hours…' he thought, just as happy as Birdy.

/-

Ryoga finally awakened near the lunchtime rush, the day after he was dragged into the Nekohanten. Kasumi and Nabiki were helping out as waitresses, figuring they were safe with Cologne, Shampoo, and Mousse. The Chinese Amazons, while a bit strange, were undoubtedly excellent fighters. The elder was more then happy to give them haven, especially after finding out who the enemy might be.

"You believe it to be Akane?" The ancient matriarch asked in shock. The Lost Boy nodded numbly. Not from any real shock mind you, but his energy was still very low from the day before.

"There's no other suspects aside from me and I know I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed, but I stand out. She'd want someone that maybe has a fighting fit body and is relatively invisible. Since Ranma came here, it became 'Akane who?' Perfect." Ryoga said. Cologne just stared in awe at the complex thought he put together.

"Interesting theory and it bears investigating. Mousse said he saw Ranma being attacked by Miss Hinako, but that he disappeared in the confusion." She said.

"Ranma leavin' a fight?" He asked in shocked disbelief.

"Yes, he was reported to have been almost dead. I just hope he didn't find a quiet place to compose a final haiku." She said wryly.

"If he was gonna die, he'd go out with a bang. We'd know when he died." The Lost Boy was so certain that Cologne found herself believing him in spite of what she heard. Oh an the teacher? She was currently sitting in the corner of the room with another huge jar of pocky and showing no signs of leaving. She kept giving Mousse speculative looks that unnerved the myopic boy.

"May we be cursed to live in interesting times…" Cologne muttered to herself. "…Whoever said that should have killed themselves."

/-

Gomez was currently in the middle of preparations for what the night would bring. It would certainly be a difficult battle if recent events were any indication, but at least the officer was gone. The one remaining with the power to oppose them had been spied at a restaurant that translated to Cat Café. The Arkazoid had even managed to get inside and find out that the one responsible was a mere boy, but at least he was too weak now to do anything.

"Miss Revi has ordered your death. Don't blame me, blame fate." He said aloud. It was honorable to warn your opponent of what was coming. What the alien couldn't understand is why they were here in the first place and why they were harming humans. He had signed on to this with her upon the hearing that she had a grudge against the police. They had arrested him years ago when he was still young for a simple infraction, but had managed to keep him locked up on what he thought were trumped up charges. Gomez had nothing against innocent people, but police were a different story.

"Perhaps she will explain soon, but in the meantime I need to focus more on the job ahead." the first sign you're going crazy is talking to yourself. Gomez seemed cool and collected, but the alien sociopath was anything but. Given the right situation he could be absolutely psychotic. Standard criminal really, he never believed it was his fault for what he did, but he did acknowledge justification.

"Hard to believe a child could possess such power. Perhaps Miss Revi was right about finding a suitable partner here. I just hope the young man is well rested. I need a good battle." he smiled grimly. The few Arkazoids watching him shuddered.

/-

Revi could feel the human's body weakening from lack of sleep and mental exhaustion, but couldn't even close her eyes for a second lest the images return. Her memories would surface at the strangest times and never in a particular pattern. The bad ones were where she remembered the people she killed or even remembering her mother being killed. The worst memories were the dreams full of longing when she remembered her mother in life and the few times she was happy.

'I am Christelle Revi. My goal is to...' a flash went through her mind '...find a suitably strong partner to take on the galaxy police.' another flash tore through her psyche, but she was too tired to see anything was wrong. Akane watched in amazement as she could almost see invisible wires pulling the alien woman along.

'Maybe it's just the exhaustion setting in, but I'm having trouble finding the ruthless Revi that's supposed to be, in her mind anyway, the greatest criminal in the galaxy. She was actually feeling useful, even if she was essentially trapped in her own mind. Despite that, the girl kept up her guerilla tactics. Today would be the masterstroke. Revi was actually going to get some uninterrupted sleep. Her mental barriers were weakened and she needed to get inside the mental block that resisted her attempts to probe it. Their mind was jerked into semi-wakefulness by father's voice.

"Akane dear, you look tired. You should go get some sleep." he suggested. Revi almost wept. Sleep was desperately craved, but impossible to get. Soun took hold of his daughter's shoulders and gently steered her to her room. With tenderness, he tucked her into bed.

"D-daddy? C-could you stay with me?" Revi hated the weakness in her voice, but she didn't want to be alone. Her host's father smiled and sat on her bed, the weary girl cuddling up to him and falling fast asleep. Soun Tendo just smiled and stroked his daughter's hair softly.

"Sleep you poor child, just sleep." the way he said it made the still alert Akane jerk in shock. He knew! The girl smiled as she realized that somehow her father knew. He leaned in close to her ear and whispered.

"She's so alone, just as you and your sisters must have been. Please forgive me." the tears were thick in his voice, but not once did he bawl. With fluid grace he stood and left the room. A true father knows his own child.

'Okay Daddy. Now, let's get to work.' she thought as she went to the already clearing blockage, determined to get to the bottom of it. What she saw when she got there made her gasp in shock.

'O-oh my...'

/-

The soon to be separated duo were out of the tank and blurring through a kata to loosen up sore muscles. Their recent healing gave them too much energy and not enough ways to use it.

'Maybe we should try conserving the extra energy, Ranma. That way we won't be so weak after the separation.' Birdy suggested.

'How d'ya know we'll be weak?' he asked curiously as he wound down.

'Everything else seems to have made us weak in one way or another. Why should this be any different?' she asked. The pigtailed boy couldn't fault her logic so he decided to sit down and relax. He absently looked over at the clock and nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Kuso! It's almost five! Let's go, Birdy!" the young martial artist took off running back to the medical bay. They were just in time to unpack the equipment. It took them several minutes to hook everything up, with Birdy having to take over a couple times, to get it all set up. Some of the devices looked just plain evil. Birdy laughed at some of his speculations before reassuring him that it was all going to be okay. Chief Megius was on hand to help direct their efforts.

"The moment you have been waiting for has arrived." he said with gentle humor. "Go back into the tank. The procedure is painless without even a trace of discomfort. Unless you're counting the fact that you'll need to remove your clothes. After you're done, we have a few things we need to discuss." with that cheerful thought, he directed them into the healing pod. The new additions to it made it look like some kind of alien blender. It had what looked like blades and dangling wires, the whole thing screamed pain, but the Chief wouldn't lie, right? After a quick strip, the UFO catcher arm hoisted them up again before dropping them into the tank. As the "blender" started up, the last thing Ranma thought was 'He lied about it not hurting.' before passing out from the pain.

/-

Whether it was hours or merely minutes, that kind of torture was almost too much to handle, but it was worth it. Birdy concluded that the procedure was a success when she looked over and saw a floating Ranma next to her. What really drew her attention was that he was completely naked. Luckily they weren't sharing thoughts anymore so she was safe from his comments, but one thing shot that idea all to hell and stomped on it.

'You're certainly a looker yourself.' Ranma thought to her with a grin. The two teens stared at each other for what seemed like forever until the communicator going off broke it. Getting out of the tank proved to be interesting considering neither one of them wanted to go first, but they had no choice. Once out, Birdy got her uniform on as Ranma quickly yanked his pants on, just in time for the police girl to take the message.

"Was the procedure a success?" Megius asked.

"Yes it was, Chief." Birdy smiled dazzlingly. The insectoid couldn't remember the last time she smiled like that and found it a tad distracting. Ranma came up behind her and easily set his arm about her shoulders, Birdy snuggling into his hug. The chief chose not to question why her hair was still red, it just wasn't important.

"Good to hear. On to business. Gomez has been spotted near a restaurant called the Nekohanten. It is also currently the location of a young man with phenomenal abilities who destroyed two of Revi's top assassins. Salamander and Undine. If Gomez is not stopped, there will be a tremendous loss of life. You both have your orders. Over and out." he said before terminating the connection. In the silence that followed the teens looked at each other.

"A young man with phenomenal abilities?" she asked aloud. Ranma kissed her softly as he responded.

'Must be Ryoga. We better hurry.' they broke the kiss reluctantly, but there were more important things to do. The pigtailed boy was about to get his clothes on when Birdy handed him a bracer like the one she wears.

"Try this instead. It's faster." with a smile she took off for the hatch. Without even pausing, Ranma used the bracer to put on the uniform. It was half red, half black on top with all black below a red belt. It felt like a second skin. His last thought before running out was.

'How do you wear this?' A laugh was his only answer.

The End

Author's Notes: Whew! This story is fun to write and thankfully my creative batteries are fully recharged. This story was originally only supposed to be four chapters, but there was so much that could be done. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Ja ne!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty. Any resemblance between actual persons and events is cause for medication. Thank you.

Author's Notes: I'm sorry it took so long to update, but I hope it was worth the wait. This chapter will explore certain things and this is where the AU part comes in. Enjoy!

Ranma the Mighty

Chapter 8

Stand and Fight

Akane's shock was obvious as she finally got a good look at what the block had been hiding. A child sat in the corner of a large, white room. Blood was sprayed all over the walls; the child's dress was drenched as well. Large, luminous eyes stared at something just off to the right with horror. As the young martial artist entered the room, sounds began assaulting her ears. The whine of machinery, the blood-curdling shriek of a person in torment, and the maniacal laughter that rose above it all. Her eyes took in the scene with shock. The man turned to look back at the child, he was literally faceless, but not as a result of something removing it. The space was just blank flesh without even eye sockets. He loomed at well over six feet tall, but somehow seemed rather small.

"We play this out every day, but you don't seem to wanna participate. That's fine by me, but you're only hurting yourself. Just give in and I'll make the pain go away." He cajoled the child, who only shook her head stubbornly. Rage was clear in his voice. "I'm through being nice about it! Submit already! I'm through being the 'invader', I want to be the one in charge!" he ranted on, never once noticing the other person in the room. The fiendish weapon that he used on the girl's mother was suddenly brought to bear, but as he charged he was backhanded clear across the room by the powerful girl. He stood shakily, wiping blood from where his lip was split.

"What the hell is going on?" she roared in fury. The child was staring at her savior in awe.

"I thought I forced you out." Revi said in wonder.

"I can't be beaten that easily. This is my mind and my life! I have seen that you're a good person, but who is that?"

"Allow me to answer for myself. I was the one responsible for protecting her from life's hardships. Her mother failed at that, but I never failed. Now I just a want a piece of the pie. No, I want to be the one in charge. Once I kill the ego then I'll be free!" he spat as he brought the cruel weapon up again. Akane unimpressed as he rushed at her.

"Too…slow!" she cried as she unleashed the speed that Ranma had been training her in by dodging her attacks. The first hit took her would- be assailant in the ribs, knocking all the air from his lungs, and staggering him. A well-placed high kick spun him around in place like a top before a massive over-the-shoulder mallet strike flattened him. She smirked confidently before she saw the man sink into the floor.

"Not bad at all, but this isn't the real world. It's time to play." His maniacal laughter chilled everyone to the bone.

/-

Ranma looked over at his new companion as the two of them leapt from rooftop on their way to the Nekohanten. He couldn't help thinking about the circumstances that led up to this moment. The girl beside him flashed him a grin full of mischief, excitement, and a little fear. The perfect reflection of what he was feeling. They were on their way to a battle that would pit them against a powerful alien menace that had already defeated the police girl once, and did it easily. He assured her over their mental link that it would be different this time.

Birdy sighed in a mixture of pleasure and nervousness. Pleasure at the thought that Ranma was all hers and nervousness at the upcoming battle. The last time she fought Gomez he easily defeated her. She just had to rely on the assumption that what her boyfriend had said was true. He had said that even tired, Ryoga could waste an Arkazoid easily and that the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew could handle similar problems. Who ever heard of a group of teenage earthlings saving the world from evil space aliens? Still, she let herself be comforted by his assurances. Maybe she could speed up just to be on the safe side.

The scene that greeted them was shocking to say the least. It appeared as if the whole front entrance to the Nekohanten had been blown outward and things were pouring out into the streets. They appeared to be black Arkazoids, but the main attraction was Gomez squaring off against Ryoga. Both had lost their shirts and numerous injuries adorned their bodies, but only the fanged boy seemed affected and was steadily giving ground.

'We better get in there!' the police girl said urgently. The black droids seemed to be too much for the beleaguered martial artists. With a short nod, the to youths jumped into the fray.

/-

Another powerful blow to the ribs caught Ryoga and knocked his wind out. If it wasn't for the fact that people were counting on him then he might have given up, but he couldn't. The code dictated that he protect the weak. His eyes burned with new fire as he launched forward at his opponent with a powerful spinning back kick. The mighty alien staggered, but didn't fall. He sneered at the Lost Boy with barely contained glee.

"If that's all you got then this will be short." He mocked. Ryoga refused to be drawn to the bait. Gomez attacked again and rammed the boy hard in the chest. Sounds of renewed combat erupted from around them, but it failed to penetrate their sphere of awareness. Only when an Arkazoid head rolled between them did they notice the mass destruction that lay around them. The sight of Birdy and Ranma, separated, made Ryoga double take. He took notice of his opponent's look of chagrin with a smile.

"You let your guard down…" he said softly as he began gathering power between his palms, the red energy taking on the visage of a ghastly skull. With a mighty thrust, he fired the deadly attack with a cry of "Death Anger!" the skull turning into a bright blast of red just before striking the distracted alien full in the chest. With a startled cry, he flew backwards, through the storefront across the street.

"Gotcha…" he said just as he passed out.

/-

As Ryoga fell, the last of the Arkazoids fell as well. The Nerima Wrecking Crew stared at the robotic carnage around them for several minutes before slowly making their way to check for any wounded. The Lost Boy's injuries all appeared superficial. His most serious problem was fatigue, much to everyone's relief.

"We weren't needed I guess." Birdy said. A little disappointed, but mostly relieved. Ranma pulled her in for a warm hug. Kasumi had come out from hiding in the restaurant to help tend injuries. Things were looking up until a deep rumbling was heard from Gomez was last seen. With a roar and a vast explosion, the true form of Gomez emerged. He was hideous, muscles were bulging from his body, and tendons were tight as steel cables. His skin was a gruesome red color with black flecks like congealed blood. His hair was spiky and black, his eyes were yellow, and the veins in his neck bulged with each new cry.

"He still alive?" Shampoo exclaimed. The weary warriors stood up to fight only to find Ranma and Birdy before them.

"Stay down. You've done enough." The pigtailed boy said over his shoulder.

"Airen save Shampoo?" she asked with hearts in her eyes before a sharp crack from a staff silenced her.

"Good luck Ranma, Birdy." Cologne said. The teens nodded in response before setting themselves to fight.

"Let's do it." The police girl said with a grin just before the two lunged at the hulking beast.

/-

The battle going on within Akane's mind was one sided. Once it became clear that the Id was vastly more powerful then she was, he began to play with her. Her head snapped back again from a powerful straight punch that floored her. Revi tried to stop the fight, but Akane merely ordered her to stay back. The little girl was clearly torn between her desire to help and the older girl's order.

"Well bitch? Havin' fun yet? I could do this all day!" he chortled gleefully as he once again hurled her across the room. She slowly got to her feet, but she could feel her strength waning.

'Mother…help me…I can't do this alone…There's so much I still need to do…So many people that I hurt…' Akane wasn't sure whose voice it was, it seemed to contain elements of her and Revi. Her vision cleared enough to see a gloriously glowing woman standing behind the brutal murderer. The image before her was so real she could feel it. A strangled sob escaped her throat as she felt the love from the being filling her up.

'You mustn't give up. I love you, but I'm not ready to see you again. Never lose hope.' The voice spoke to the silence in her soul. Her strength returned just as the evil one reached her. She let her anger go in one burst of power that sent the enemy spiraling away, screeching in pain.

"You used Revi to kill her mother." It wasn't a question it was a statement of fact. The Id glared hatefully before she blurred and knocked him across the room, slamming him into the wall with bone crushing force.

"The…bitch had it coming…letting her daughter be abused by her father…they both died…" he managed to gasp out before another vicious blow tore through his defenses and shattered his jaw. Yet another strike ripped into his body with the force of a freight train.

"Go to hell!" Akane screamed before unleashing her total, unbridled fury in a massive burst of energy. The energy took the appearance of a ki spear that rammed through his jaw and out through the top of his skull, his heels beating a tattoo on the ground. Akane nodded her head decisively before turning toward the girl on the ground. She smiled and took the child's hand in her own and led her from the nightmare.

"We still have a job to do." She said and the little girl nodded in response.

/-

Fighting the enhanced Gomez proved to be more difficult then the two youths anticipated. His stamina and endurance seemed limitless as did his strength. The only thing they seemed able to beat him in was speed. A high punch and low kick combo was easily shrugged off by the bloody behemoth, but a vicious haymaker from said behemoth flung his assailants off like a horse swats gnats with its tail.

'At what point…did we lose control here?' Birdy panted as she painfully struggled to her feet.

'Round two… C'mon. I have a way we can beat him.' Ranma replied in her mind. The police girl let him know she understood as they set themselves for the next assault.

"C'mon! How do you expect to defeat me with that power?" Gomez laughed scornfully. His scorn turned to a frown of concentration as the two of them leapt at him in perfect sync. Ranma going in low again while Birdy went in high, just before impact they changed positions before a dual cry of "Katchu Tenshin Amaguriken!" split the night. Thousands and thousands of punches and kicks rained down upon the alien's head. Pain was clearly evident on Gomez's face.

"You little shits! I'm going to KILL YOU!" he screamed in fury as he tried to tag his nimble attackers. The two just dodged easily as e continued to try and strike them, occasionally they would let off another lightning-fast barrage of strikes before dodging again.

'We're getting too tired to keep this up…' Birdy thought to Ranma.

'Soul of Ice…Soul of Ice…' he replied back to her. She gave him the affirmative as they proceeded to lead him into the spiral pattern that precluded disaster. The exhaustion was clearly visible on their faces as Gomez doggedly tried to strike them, without success. His aura flared up to unprecedented heights as he gathered his energy for a final attack. The attack never came as the two beat him to the punch with a quick Hiryuu Shoten Ha that tore him into the sky.

'Not too bad I guess…' Birdy thought as she made her way over to Ranma.

'…Sleepy…' Was Ranma's highly coherent thought before the two collapsed into a deep slumber. Absently wrapping around each other.

"I'd say it was cute, but we're the ones who gotta carry them inside." Mousse said before another head strike silenced him.

"Just bring them inside." Cologne said. She turned to go back inside the Nekohanten before a small, shrunken figure blocked her path.

"Not so fast Cologne. This game isn't over yet…" he said as the air around him distorted, bright lights flashed outward from his body. The sky above rumbled ominously as lightning roared down from the heavens, striking Happosai.

"This game has just begun…" he intoned ominously as the dust settled, revealing his true horror to all present. He stood well over seven feet tall, his skin was blue, his hair was black and trailed down his back with strange tattoos adorning his body. His eyes gleamed malevolently.

"Let's play…" The wounded fighters did their best to get into their ready stances to fend off the greatest nightmare of all. A shout was all it took before Hell came to Earth.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or Birdy the Mighty.

Author's Notes: I'm sorry my updates are taking so long to do, but I'm quite a bit busier now then I was before. I promise to try to make at least an effort to get the next installment out to you soon. Whew, that's a load off my mind. This chapter had quite a few surprises in store so get ready! Let's get this show on the road!

Chapter 9

Rebirth & Ascension

Akane awakened to a dark bedroom, eyes adjusting to the gloom with abnormal speed. She remembered everything that had happened over the past several days as if seeing it through water. The one thing that stood out in her mind right now was a smiling little girl with long hair blowing in the breeze.

'We're free.' Revi said with gentle cheerfulness.

'Yes we are, but my friends need me.' Akane thought back to her.

'Then let's go help them.' Was the reply.

'But, how can I help? I'm not as good as Ranma or Birdy…' the girl lowered her head.

'We're currently fused together. My body is merged with yours. You have all my power as well as your own and then some. Together we're greater then the sum of our parts. They need you. Don't let them down.' Tears were standing in Akane's eyes as she stood up. Without wasting time she threw off her skirt and tossed on a white t-shirt with Ranma's black kung fu pants. She threw on the soft Chinese shoes she bought for herself. They made great slippers, but tonight they had another purpose.

'I'm releasing my control over our body; don't be scared if anything unusual happens.' Gee, that was a comforting statement. The martial artist doubled up and collapsed to her knees with her hands gripping her skull. A ki charged shout blew out all the windows in the house as well as cracking the wooden frame of the house. The space she was occupying splintered beneath her legs, but held. Her hair grew out until it was down to mid back with streaks of turquoise throughout it. She felt her body stretch and grow, the t-shirt she was wearing suddenly felt a little tighter. The changes took only a few minutes, but it felt like hours.

'That was not pleasant…' Akane groaned as she got to her feet. Her reflection in the mirror had changed drastically. She was still recognizable, but she seemed as if she were a few years older. The juvenile lines of her face were more mature, her t-shirt was straining slightly and she felt an uncomfortable sensation.

'You better raid Nabiki's closet or Kasumi's.' Revi suggested helpfully. After quickly tying the longer hair into a loose braid, she did as suggested and in minutes was feeling better.

'My center of balance is different, but I don't seem to notice.' She noted absently. With a shrug, and a cinching of her pants, she took off out the window and leapt across town at full speed. The feeling of freedom was terrific as the young half-alien rapidly approached the Nekohanten. The sounds of combat could be clearly heard from where she was. Not because she was close, but because this body had amazing senses. A perfect flip took her to the street from the roof of a four-story building, just behind where Happosai was fighting the Nerima Wrecking Crew.

'H-Happosai?" Revi exclaimed in shock.

'That's that old pervert?' Akane asked in amazement.

'He's the one who killed Daddy! H-he unleashed my dark side, saying it was to protect me.' The little girl quaked in fear while Akane's rage shot through the roof. She suddenly stopped in surprise as she saw what he was doing. The demented martial artist had bent Shampoo in half with a kick so hard her spine almost snapped. Mousse nearly had his head removed by a powerful backhand that caved in his head. Cologne managed to tear a hole in his side with a ki blast before a swift kick shattered her hips. He was visibly gloating over his fallen foes. To Akane's horror she saw Kasumi trying to protect Ryoga, Ranma, and Birdy.

"This is going to be too easy…" he said with a grin. Finally, Akane had enough.

"**HAPPOSAI!**" she roared in a ki-enhanced voice that thundered into the alien pervert. He froze before turning slowly towards the sound. His eyes widened at the sight before him. It looked like Akane, but the aura radiating from her wasn't red but a strange sort of pale blue. Her aura looked weak, but the power was undeniable. The alien looked at the cars on the street, the yell having temporarily deafened him. The cars looked as if someone had smashed out the windows and the hoods were up, their engines smoking.

"My dear, I am at a loss as to who you are…but perhaps we could grow better acquainted." His lecherous smile usually made the girl flinch, but instead she clenched her fists, raising her aura into a virtual bonfire of power easily three times her own height. He was momentarily cowed until he realized it was probably just a fear projection. His own injuries and weariness notwithstanding, he prepared to put this child in her place. The initial attack was a simple left hook, but the speed made it anything but simple. His smile widened in anticipation until he felt his fist strike an unyielding surface. The surface turned out to be Akane's arm, raised in a negligent block before a swift counter punch smashed Happosai's ribs. It was only luck and an almost successful dodge that kept his ribs from being shattered instead of merely bruised.

"Your crimes are many ya old freak and I'm here to stop you. I'm not just Akane, I am also Christelle Revi, another of your former victims." She smiled as the alien's total shock registered on his face. She took advantage of it to unleash a powerful snap kick to his jaw, sending him reeling before striking him with continuous spinning back knuckles before switching to roundhouse kicks. The sudden onslaught kept him off balance and easily hit until a sudden dodge to the side and an overextension gave him the opportunity to catch her foot.

"Naughty little girl…You shouldn't hit your elders or your betters…" he scolded with a twisted smile as he gave her a light toss upward before following it with a side kick that took her in the abdomen, her stomach muscles groaning from the pain just seconds before a sudden palm strike to the crotch dropped her into the fetal position.

'Akane! You must get up! Everyone's counting on you!' Revi pleaded the young warrior, but all she could feel was pain. There had to be something she could do. If the others were awake and healthy they'd be able to defeat him easily. Happosai grabbed her by the throat and hauled into the air, little pressure to allow her to speak.

"Beg for your life. Plead for me to spare you. Do it or I'll kill you…" he enjoyed his position of power. It was about time that he took control once again. The girl was trying to work up the strength to say something. Something was off, however, he hadn't hurt her badly enough to diminish her ki like this. A split second was all he had as her dormant ki suddenly roared back to life, but it wasn't enough time to stop what she planned. She released her massive ki in one shout.

"Awaken!" her cry was cut off by Happosai squeezing her throat, but the damage was done. Her ki exploded outward in a mighty wave that threw him to the ground. The girl grinned at him bestially, her expended ki already regenerating due to contact with the ground.

"N-no wonder you were always so strong…Y-you draw your power from the earth…but no matter, you'll die anyway!" as he climbed shakily to his feet a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He spun to face this new threat only to be met by a fist to the face that sent him reeling. His eyes took in the scene before him. Ranma was standing there, drawing back into a ready stance as Birdy dropped into one that echoed his. Ryoga was back on his feet, eyes glowing with suppressed power. Shampoo and Mousse were readying their weapons, even Cologne was miraculously standing again. All traces of injury were gone from them. A low laugh was heard from behind him.

"So, ready to surrender?" Akane asked with a grin. Happosai knew the odds were against him, but the only thing he could do was fight. There were enough angry people here that he knew his life would be forfeit, but at least by fighting maybe he could win.

"Never." He grated out through clenched teeth before using a last ditch move. "Umi-Sen-Ken." And vanished from sight.

/-

Ranma felt as if he were being literally dragged back to consciousness by a powerful hand. His eyes opened in time to see a powerfully built man slowly staggering back to his feet as a girl that vaguely resembled Akane kneeled on the ground. His girlfriend sent a thought over to him, asking if he was all right.

'I'm fine, but what's going on?' he asked in confusion.

'That appears to be an alien fugitive that's on the most wanted list. His name's Happosai. The girl looks like Revi did when she was younger.' Birdy returned. Ranma's mind boggled at the old fart and this powerful alien man being the same person. What really got to him was the girl supposedly looked like Revi. His mind was made up, this guy had to go down. With that thought in mind he gripped the guy's shoulder. When Happosai went to turn, a swift punch to the face let him know how it was going to go down. Everyone around him dropped into ready stances. He noticed the Lost Boy standing in front of Kasumi with a furious look on his face. Happosai's words penetrated his thoughts just before he said the fatal words, Umi-Sen-Ken. The alien martial artist vanished from sight much to everyone's dismay.

"Not bad for an 'old man' huh? Catch me if you can!" his voiced echoed from all around. A shout from Shampoo drew his attention as the girl was flung into Mousse, but the myopic boy stayed standing, even spinning Shampoo around with her feet out. A muffled grunt was the reaction from the invisible pervert.

"Over there!" Cologne cried just before she was attacked by their invisible assailant, but Happy had little success with that and ended up stumbling away with a knot on the head for his trouble.

"Good job…" Kasumi began before screaming in pain and fright as the pervert reappeared with Kasumi held before him as a shield. Ryoga spun around with a snarl before leaping straight up and hurling down a storm of bandannas. Happosai held her out to take the hit, but the bandannas suddenly turned into a strange lasso that snagged the girl. Before the alien could respond, a wave of ki shot through the ground forming a strange blue circle under him, erupting in an image of Akane doing an uppercut accompanied by a wave of energy. Ryoga snapped the lasso to him and caught the girl deftly as Happosai went flying into the air only to be met by Ranma. A furious aerial battle ensued with the badly beaten alien trying to gain the upper hand. The pigtailed boy's trademark grin flashed just as he released his ki in a furious Katchu Tenshin Amaguriken, pummeling him severely. His grin turned to shock as a hefty metal pole slammed into him, hurling him into the ground. Birdy charged in with a point blank Mouko Takabisha that was easily deflected by the pole. It was clear that Happosai was in bad shape, but he refused to give in. He leapt back to put some distance from his attackers to get some breathing room.

"Give it up Happosai! There's seven of us and one of you!" Ryoga shouted.

"Numbers are only impressive to small minded people. To masters like myself…" with a flourish, a nodachi was revealed from the clever pole-like sheath. "…numbers are irrelevant." He charged in with blinding speed, right for Akane. If he was going to lose, then they would lose as well.

"Akane!" the shouts came from several directions, but the girl was unmoving in the face of certain doom. With a strange smile she twirled, a roll of cloth unfurled and deflected the sword just as Happy reached her. The cloth was electric blue silk that she wrapped around herself just before her spin ended. Her eerie smile was still in place as she watched him. He went to raise his sword again just before a hairline cut appeared on the blade, the blade falling off with a clang.

"Payback's a bitch, ne?" she inquired pleasantly as, with a look of surprise, he toppled forward. Blood rapidly spreading out from beneath him. After slipping the cloth back into subspace, she fell to her knees and wept. The warriors recovered from their shock and clustered around Akane where Kasumi pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Let's go home." Ranma suggested. Everyone merely nodded in response.

/-

Ranma sat on the roof of the Tendo house with Birdy curled up against his side. So much had happened that night. It was hard to believe such a short span of time to contain so many life-altering events. He smiled down at the girl cuddling up to him. Sensing his scrutiny she looked up, a smile brightening her face. A kiss was shared as were private emotional thoughts. With a small moan she climbed into his lap, deepening the kiss. Ranma managed to salvage a portion of himself to break the kiss for air.

"Whoo…" was all he could say as he leaned back, stroking her hair. She lay on his chest, purring like a contented feline. Since they were linked, cats held little fear for him, and the purring was absolutely adorable.

"Thought you'd like that…" she said to him warmly. "You're also wondering about what's going to happen to Akane, right?" he nodded. Birdy decided to get more comfortable and managed to get even closer to him without climbing into his skin.

"Okay, according to the Chief, Revi is technically in custody since we're both Galaxy Police. Yes, he put you on the payroll. Akane is safe and even the chief can that Revi's different. The official word is that she is being incarcerated on a low tech, unimportant planet with no possibility of interstellar travel." She wrapped up the summary and grinned at his face.

"Unimportant?" he said in an incredulous whisper. She nodded, laughter dancing in her eyes. Suddenly he roared with laughter, joined in by her giggling. The two lovebirds laughed at the stars.

/-

A similar scene to the one on the roof was taking place in the living room. Ryoga was lying on the couch with Kasumi stretched out beside him. It wasn't his idea, the gentle girl had insisted, and he had to admit it felt good. He had his arm loosely draped around her waist, the two of them staring at the TV but not really seeing what was on. The events of tonight wouldn't pass outside of Nerima. No one would know how close an insane alien came to killing everyone or the ones responsible for saving them. That suited Ryoga just fine.

"Who would have guessed… Alien possessions, Galaxy Police, Akane saving the day, and you not even getting lost once…What a day." Kasumi looked over her shoulder at the fanged martial artist with a fond smile. On an impulse, he kissed her softly, taking her by surprise. After a startled moment, she returned the kiss fully. As the two broke for air, Ryoga smiled.

"I'm not even embarrassed." His comment triggered a giggle from the normally composed girl.

"Hmmm…Maybe I should fix that?" she said playfully. The Lost Boy suddenly turned bright red as if on cue and began stammering. She had to admit that this could be a lot of fun.

/-

Akane sat in her room musing on the events of the night. Revi was asleep, leaving the girl to her thoughts. It felt good being able to do what the others could do. Jump high, run fast, and throw ki blasts. Oh yeah, it felt real good. Her body had changed so much, but yet another thing drew her attention. She was hot; it wasn't even a conceited statement. As they had walked home after disposing of Happosai's body, she saw people actually falling over to stare at her. She wanted to yell about the perverts, but Revi put it in perspective.

'As long as they look, but don't touch, what's the problem? You're beautiful and they're just appreciating what they see.' Akane had to admit it made sense and it also felt good. She knew she wasn't a pervert so it put that in perspective as well.

"All I needed was an alien consciousness sharing my brain. Go figure." She laughed at herself. She had wondered where everyone had gone until Nabiki told her that she had evacuated the idiots to Auntie Nodoka's house to give the weary warriors a break.

"The schools can't be joined through marriage now. I'd punt my own father if he suggested it. Perhaps we can teach other our schools. That makes more sense." Happy with her solution, she lay down and went to sleep. Her dreams filled with a happy child playing with her in a field of flowers.

Thirteen Years Later-

Out in the backyard a familiar scene was taking place. A girl, no more then ten, squared off against a man in a dingy white gi, his bandanna covered a shiny head. The man sized up his opponent. The girl was a little taller then average height, almost five feet tall. Her clothing consisted of a blue Chinese shirt with black kung fu pants; her long red hair was pulled back in a braid, locks of purple and pink accented her hair. Her eyes were a strange mix of icy blue and deep purple. Her stance was loose and her bearing proud. The man couldn't help shaking his head in mock disappointment, barely concealing his pride in her.

"Come on! Stop wasting my time!" he called out to her. The girl disdainfully threw her head back, settling her braid before whipping into a ready stance just seconds before flying at him like a humanoid bullet. The old man dived to the side before coming back at her with a quick snap kick, which she easily avoided. The two traded blows for several minutes before the usual outcome occurred and the girl ended up in the koi pond.

"Grandpa!" the girl made the term sound like a complaint. The old man chuckled softly as he tossed her a towel.

"It's no use complainin' like yer weak, Kikuko. Ya did better today." He admitted freely. Another redhead stuck her head around the corner, pocky sticking out of her mouth; she appeared to be no more then four.

"Grampa!" the little girl called out. The man grinned at the little redhead, her eyes were a clear blue without the same hair locks her sister had. He gestured her over and the child took off running on her sturdy legs towards him before doing a leap that would impress an Olympic gymnast and landing in his arms.

"Ranko! What would your mother say if she saw you runnin' around without your shoes!" he scolded even as the little child giggled cheerfully. The other child came over and he gave her a hug as well. The girls were two of the heirs to the Anything Goes Style Saotome Ryu. Well, Ranko was a little young to start, but as long as Genma kept it quiet then it was okay. He looked towards the house with a contented smile. Thirteen years ago everything changed when a Galaxy Police officer introduced herself to the family. Ranma and Akane were supposed to be together as per the family agreement, but during the events leading up to the battle with Happosai, the plans sort of went out the window. The boy had fallen in love with the alien girl and nothing could be done to dissuade him. Then Akane came up with a brilliant idea to honor the agreement and let them both follow their own paths. They were to train each other in their respective styles and thereby blend the two. Soun accepted it before Genma did, however, and there was a period of time when he wouldn't even talk to his son. It was a terrible thing to do and he almost missed the most important event of his son's life. The wedding between Ranma and his new fiancée, Birdy.

"Good thing I was in time." He whispered softly.

"What was that Grandpa?" Kikuko asked. He chuckled.

"Nothing sweetheart, just thinking." He said as he allowed the child lead him into the house, Ranko snuggled against his chest, and his heart full of warmth.

/-

Ranma was in the dojo with an twelve-year-old boy that looked like a mirror image of himself when he was younger. The little boy was his oldest child and the only inheritor of his curse. His name was Peregrine, named for a small falcon by his mother. Like his namesake, he was quick, agile, and was an excellent young fighter. He looked back at his father with a smile. His eyes were strange as well, the left eye blue and the right eye purple. His black hair was streaked with red strands and was red at the tips. Birdy had warned him that their children would be unique, but he didn't love them any less. Ranma himself had matured into tall, handsome man with well-defined muscle tone and the grace of a ballet dancer. All the baby fat that had softened his face was gone and leaving a man where a boy once was.

"Are you ready?" he asked his son. The boy merely smiled. The child was quiet by nature. Which was good, considering the Saotome Foot-in-Mouth disease. The sparred like they did every morning, much to the boy's enjoyment. He had inherited his father's love of the Art. The practice was interrupted by a call of "Breakfast!" The two looked at each other before breaking into a dead run for the house.

Him and Birdy had been together for almost thirteen years. Thirteen years, three children, teaching classes, and still found the time to be together and play with their children. Life was good. The best part was that his honor was saved in the end. Ukyou declared herself ronin just before running off with Konatsu. No one ever saw them again. Though he did hear awhile back that they were quite happily in the Hokkaido area. Shampoo and Mousse got into a fight not even the day after the fight against Happosai. The myopic boy finally let her have it. She had always assumed that because she was named the best warrior in the village that naturally she was the best in her age group. Mousse dissolved that notion by finally going all out against her and defeating her. The young Amazon girl needed to be dragged back to China in chains that Mousse willingly provided. That had to have been the strangest marriage they ever had. Thankfully, they finally decided to get along and try to make it work. The result was a child that they named Meiling, deliberately going against Amazon naming procedures so that their child wouldn't sound like a hygiene product. A more energetic girl couldn't be found anywhere in the village. The two had returned to the Nekohanten, where Cologne wanted to spend her declining years. Ranma dropped back to let his son think he won and smiled in thought. Even Kodachi and Kuno got help and became somewhat respectable members of society.

"We all gotta grow up sometime…" he said wistfully before a loud crash and shouting was heard from the house. With a muttered curse, he took off inside.

/-

Two women stood in the kitchen working alongside each other. The elder of the two had long brown hair held back in a ponytail and exuded an aura of serenity. The younger was a fiery redhead with blue and purple locks in her hair. They chatted amiably together as they cooked and got breakfast ready. Birdy Saotome and Kasumi Habiki both had something in common. They were both married to two of the greatest martial artists on the planet and it could be trying work sometimes. Especially providing food for them as well as for the other stomachs in the extended family. The sound of hammering could be heard somewhere in the house as a carpenter put the finishing touches on the new wing of the almost feudal looking compound. With so many people living at the Tendo-ke they needed room. Behind them at the table, Kasumi's little sister Akane was entertaining the youngest Hibiki. As the first and only child, he had inherited his father's curse. The little boy was the same age as Ranko and was as strong as a young ox.

"Now Ryo, what have you been told about walls?" Akane asked. This was surprisingly a common talk they had to have often considering his penchant for getting lost. When he'd get lost, the boy would simply punch down walls until he either found someone or was outside.

"Walls are meant to last longer then a week." He replied dutifully. His black hair was tied back from his forehead with a tiger striped bandanna.

"Good, so what's so hard about calling for help?" she asked.

"Uhm…It's not manly. Grandma Nodoka says so…" he scrunched up his little face. The young woman groaned in frustration. The older woman meant well and loved having grandchildren around the house to spoil, but her lessons were infuriating. Kasumi went to the door to call everyone to breakfast. At that moment, Nabiki walked into the kitchen with her new boyfriend, the flavor of the week. She was arguing loudly with him in English and he was shouting back at her. When it heated up even more, the man slapped her across the face, stunning everyone in the room. The silence was broken by little Ryo saying with obvious anger.

"You hurt Aunt Nabiki." Before anyone could stop him, he flew at the man and knocked him down with a powerful tackle. He jumped back to his feet and kicked the little boy, sending him crashing into the china cabinet. Suddenly, he felt several powerful auras kick up. He turned to assess the situation and found himself surrounded by four very angry women, a couple of growing redheaded girls, two furiously glowing old men in gi, a boy in a red silk shirt and an older version of him standing just behind him.

"H-hey…he attacked me first!" the man tried to explain, but angry glares received his statement.

"It's not us ya gotta worry about." Ranma said, but as the man sighed, he finished. "It's him." And pointed at Ryoga. The man turned and caught sight of the man mountain behind him and chuckled nervously before tearing out of the house, screaming in terror. They watched as they lapped the house before turning back to the table.

"Who wants breakfast?" Kasumi asked cheerfully.

The End

Author's Notes: The final chapter to the story! I am so happy that my story was popular, but all good things must come to an end. To those of you who were reading "Final Half" I wish to apologize again, but I will be taking it down. Gomen nasai. I can't finish it. I left it sit too long and lost the urge to finish. Well, until next time, ja ne!


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